Nominee Rules Set To Change
AW/129/N/19 July 2005
MP TO CALL FOR CHERISHED NUMBER TRANSFER RULE CHANGES
The complex rules that surround cherished number plate sales could soon be simplified thanks to a motion being tabled in the House of Commons tomorrow (Wednesday 20 July 2005), according to the Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMI).
Mark Hendrick MP for Preston is tabling a motion under the 10 minute rule to amend the current legislation so that the assignment rights of a cherished number be transferred directly to the new keeper at the time of initial retention.
Personalised registration numbers are never owned. Vehicle keepers control the assignment rights to the cherished registration mark. Consumers pay for the right to use these on a vehicle registered in their name.
Under the current rules, once a registration mark is sold on a V778 Retention Certificate, the new purchaser has no rights to the mark until it is assigned to their vehicle. The current registered keeper can hold a registration mark on a V778 Retention Certificate for up to 12 months. They can also apply for a right of retention or extension. These rights are non-transferable. This means that a buyer might never get to receive their purchase.
Justin Tidmarsh, head of the RMI’s Cherished Number Dealers Association commented: ‘Clearly there is considerable potential for fraud or at least financial loss to anyone buying a cherished mark under the current system. A buyer could lose their money if the previous owner acted dishonestly and chose to reassign the registration mark after money had changed hands. A buyer could also end up with nothing if the previous keeper simply could not be found to extend the assignment rights.
Tidmarsh continues: ‘The proposed changes would introduce a simpler, faster and more practical approach that would be self-financing and would be in line with the Government’s objective of facilitating less bureaucracy for business'.
He adds: The change would also enable greater choice and protection.’
The 10 minute rule system enables backbench MPs in the House of Commons to raise issues that might otherwise be overlooked.