Number plates in the UK

Number plates in the UK are divided up into two separate groups, Dateless Northern Irish Registrations and Dated Current Style Registrations.

Dateless Irish Number Plates begin with one of the following letters depending on which county the vehicle is first registered. The current issue registrations are:

Armagh: CXZ

Ballymena: DRZ

Belfast: IFZ

Coleraine: RNZ

Downpatrick: TJZ

Enniskillen: KIG

Londonderry: TUI

Omagh: OHZ

Dated Current Registrations all begin with two letters, which indicate the town the vehicle was registered at first, followed by the year letter and then three letters:

AA-AN – Peterborough

AO-AU – Norwich

AV-AY – Ipswich

AY – Alderney

BA-BY – Birmingham

CA-CO – Cardiff

CP-CV – Swansea

CW-CY – Bangor

DA-DK – Chester

DL-DY – Shrewsbury

EA-EY – Chelmsford

FA-FP – Nottingham

FR-FY – Lincoln

GA-GO – Maidstone

GP-GY – Brighton

HA-HJ – Bournemouth

HK-HV – Portsmouth

HW – Isle of Wight

HX-HY – Portsmouth

KA-KL – Luton

KM-KY – Northampton

LA-LJ – London (Wimbledon)

LK-LT – London (Stanmore)

LU-LY – London (Sidcup)

MA-MM – Manchester

MN – Isle of Man

MO-MY – Manchester

NA-NO – Newcastle

NP-NY – Stockton

OA-OY – Oxford

PA-PT – Preston

PU-PY – Carlisle

RA-RY – Reading

SA-SJ – Glasgow

SK-SO – Edinburgh

SP-ST – Dundee

SU-SW – Aberdeen

SX-SY – Inverness

VA-VY – Worcester

WA-WJ – Exeter

WK-WL – Truro

WM-WY – Bristol

YA-YK – Leeds

YL-YU – Sheffield

YV-YY – Beverley

The first two numbers in the Centre define the age of the Car (month/Year)

Registration Number Date Registered Registration Number Date Registered
02 Mar-02 51 Sep-02
03 Mar-03 52 Sep-03
04 Mar-04 53 Sep-04
05 Mar-05 54 Sep-05
06 Mar-06 55 Sep-06
07 Mar-07 56 Sep-07
08 Mar-08 57 Sep-08
09 Mar-08 58 Sep-08
10 Mar-10 59 Sep-10
11 Mar-11 60 Sep-11
12 Mar-12 61 Sep-12
13 Mar-13 62 Sep-13
14 Mar-14 63 Sep-14
15 Mar-15 64 Sep-15
16 Mar-16 65 Sep-16
17 Mar-17 66 Sep-17
18 Mar-18 67 Sep-18
19 Mar-19 68 Sep-19
20 Mar-20 69 Sep-20
21 Mar-21 70 Sep-21
22 Mar-22 71 Sep-22
23 Mar-23 72 Sep-23
24 Mar-24 73 Sep-24
25 Mar-25 74 Sep-25
26 Mar-26 75 Sep-26
27 Mar-27 76 Sep-27
28 Mar-28 77 Sep-28
29 Mar-29 78 Sep-29
30 Mar-30 79 Sep-30
31 Mar-31 80 Sep-31
32 Mar-32 81 Sep-32
33 Mar-33 82 Sep-33
34 Mar-34 83 Sep-34
35 Mar-35 84 Sep-35
36 Mar-36 85 Sep-36
37 Mar-37 86 Sep-37
38 Mar-38 87 Sep-38
39 Mar-39 88 Sep-39
40 Mar-40 89 Sep-40
41 Mar-41 90 Sep-41
42 Mar-42 91 Sep-42
43 Mar-43 92 Sep-43
44 Mar-44 93 Sep-44
45 Mar-45 94 Sep-45
46 Mar-46 95 Sep-46

So the next time you are looking number plates in the UK you will be able to identify where the vehicle is from and how old the vehicle is!