Free, from the DVLA and DVSA registers
Number plate check
Everything the government holds against a registration, on one page: what the vehicle is, whether it’s taxed and MOT’d, its test history and mileage, open recalls, and what the plate itself says about when and where it was issued.
How to read a current-style plate
Plates issued since September 2001 follow one pattern: two letters, two numbers, three letters. Take CV26 XYZ.
| CV | Memory tag. The first letter is the region (C is Cymru, Wales), the second narrows it to a DVLA office (Cardiff, in this case). |
|---|---|
| 26 | Age identifier. Plates issued March to August carry the year’s last two digits. September to February carry the year plus 50, so a plate issued in October 2026 reads 76. |
| XYZ | Random letters. I and Q are never used; some combinations are withheld. |
Region letters
| A | Anglia | L | London | S | Scotland |
| B | Birmingham | M | Manchester and Merseyside | V | Severn Valley |
| C | Cymru (Wales) | N | North (Newcastle, Stockton) | W | West of England |
| D | Deeside to Shrewsbury | O | Oxford | X | Personal export |
| E | Essex | P | Preston and Carlisle | Y | Yorkshire |
| F | Forest and Fens | R | Reading | ||
| G | Garden of England | ||||
| H | Hampshire and Dorset | ||||
| K | Borehamwood and Northampton |
Older formats
Prefix (1983 to 2001), like P123 ABC: the first letter is the year letter. Suffix (1963 to 1983), like ABC 123P: the last letter is the year. Dateless plates, like ABC 123, predate 1963 or were sold as cherished numbers and say nothing about age.
Questions
What does a number plate check show?
The make, model, colour, fuel and engine size DVLA holds for the plate, its tax status and due date, MOT status, the full MOT history with mileage and advisories, whether DVSA has an open safety recall, and a reading of the plate's own format: where and when it was first issued.
Can I find the owner from a number plate?
No. Keeper names and addresses are personal data and DVLA only releases them on a formal request with reasonable cause, for example after an accident or a parking matter on private land. No online check gives you the owner.
Why doesn't the plate age match the car?
Either it's a private (cherished) plate transferred onto the vehicle, or the vehicle was registered on a plate from an earlier batch. The age identifier tells you when the plate was issued; the report's first-registration date tells you about the car.
Is a number plate check the same as an MOT check?
The MOT check is one part of it. A plate check pulls everything the two government registers hold against that registration: DVLA for the vehicle and its tax, DVSA for the tests and recalls.
Related: ULEZ compliance, vehicle recall check, find an MOT station.