24 and 74 plates will be in market in 2024 - here's everything you need to know before you get one.
Last updated on 9 August 2024 | 0 min read
New number plates arrive twice a year, in March and September, but what changes each time, and what do they actually mean for car buyers?
Let’s look at how the number plate system works and how it can show you the age of a car, where the car was registered, and what plates are out there today.
From 1 September 2024, new cars will be registered with a 74-plate. The new 74-plate will apply to all new vehicles registered until February 28th, 2025.
All new number registration plates will incorporate the number plate changes introduced from 1 September 2021, which mandate the use of solid black lettering and more durable materials.
All standard number plates follow the same system. If we take the plate MA70 TDR as an example, we can show you how it works:
1. The first two letters are the ‘local memory tag’, which is where the vehicle was registered. For example, LA to LY cover London, and MA – MY covers Manchester and Merseyside. 2. The next two digits are numbers known as the ‘age identifier’. These are changed every six months, in March and September. The March number is usually the same as the year, and September is the year plus 50. For example: • '17' was introduced in March 2017 and '67' in September 2017 • '18' in March 2018 and '68' in September 2018 • '19' in March 2019 and '69' in September 2019 • ‘20’ in March 2020 and ‘70’ in September 2020 • ‘21’ in March 2021 and ‘71’ in September 2021 • ‘22’ in March 2022 and ‘72’ in September 2022 • ‘23’ in March 2023 and ‘73’ in September 2023 So, a car with a ‘24’ plate will be registered between March and the end of August in 2024, while a car with a ‘74’ plate will be registered between September 2024 and the end of February 2025. 3. The last three letters are randomly chosen and allocated to a dealership when the car is registered. Some personalised plates don’t follow this system, but we’ll get into those in a bit.
You can use the memory tags (the first two letters) to find out where the car was registered. Here’s your key:
AA-AY = Anglia BA-BY = Birmingham CA-CY = Cymru DA-DY = Deeside to Shrewsbury EA-EY = Essex FA-FY = Forest and Fens GA-GY = Garden of England HA-HY = Hampshire and Dorset HW = Isle of Wight KA-KY = Borehamwood and Northampton LA-LY = London MA-MY = Manchester and Merseyside NA-NY = North OA-OY = Oxford PA-PY = Preston RA-RY = Reading SA-SY = Scotland VA-VY = Severn Valley WA-WY = West of England YA-YB = Yorkshire The letters I and Q aren’t used in standard number plates, and the letter z only appears in random selection at the end.
Here are all the number plates coming up from 2024 onwards:
2024 = 24 and 74 plates 2025 = 25 and 75 plates 2026 = 26 and 76 plates 2027 = 27 and 77 plates 2028 = 28 and 78 plates 2029 = 29 and 79 plates The 2030s will follow the same system, starting with 30 and 80 plates.
