British Car Registration Plates

15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit  

1. In which year were the first car registration plates issued in the UK? 1911 1914 1903 1895

2. The first number plate system included a single letter, or pair of letters, followed by a maximum of four numbers. What did the letters signify? The region where the car was first registered. The year in which the car was registered new. Nothing - they were just random letters. The owner's initial(s).

3. The first major change to British car registration numbers occurred in which year? 1963 1919 1945 1932

4. What was the suffix system? There was no such system. The addition of the letters GB as part of the European Union. The addition of an extra number to create more combinations. The addition of a letter code to denote the year of registration.

5. In the 1960s, there were fewer 'E' registration cars than any others registered. What was the reason for this? The start of the registration year changed from January to August. An energy crisis led to fewer new cars being sold. A recession in the car industry meant less cars were built.. A credit crunch led to less car sales.

6. Why did car registrations switch to a prefix system in 1983? There was no such thing as a prefix system. The suffix system had run out of letters. The police advised that it made vehicle identification easier. It fitted the design of a number plate better.

7. From 1999, the year code changed every six months. What was the main reason for this? To create two main sale periods in the year. To sell more cars. To reduce the pressure on car dealers of one major sales period. All of these reasons.

8. The current car registration system was introduced in 2001. In which year will it end? 2049 2030 2022 2054

9. The regional identifier codes operated in the current system have some indirect associations. Although more obvious ones are 'L' for London or 'B' for Birmingham, where would a car displaying the letter 'F' have been registered new? Kent or Sussex Essex Hampshire Nottingham or Lincoln

10. Which regional identifier code is reserved for the Isle of Wight? IoW IW HW WT