Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms Cloning

Wrong route!
If the car concerned is genuine and not the one with a cloned plate then a return as "not as described" is not applicable.
It's not the sellers fault someone somewhere has cloned the plate.
DVLA route with possible cherished number if the police cannot find the clone car.
Or sell it!
Otherwise put up with repeated stops whilst complaining to police until resolution.
The real problem is if the offending car is involved in something serious and proof has to be provided to clear yourself. Usually proof of being elsewhere at tne time of the incident.
In work we had a parking fine from Hackney. We were Cardiff based. We had to provide details of the car's location at the date/time of the offence, luckily we signed for the car when using it. We also pointed out the offending car was a different colour!

A thought occurs, has the car been cloned or did a previous keeper cause the problem. Contact the ANPR desk at your regional HQ and get the marker removed. If all the offences occurred before his ownership it will be no problem. If they are still going on get the marker changed to " verify keeper details and VIN" has he got his details for the car registered with DVLA or did he or the dealership forget. I know when I bought my Morgan admin "forgot" to send of the V5. I only found out when I contacted DVLA to put my cherished transfer on.

I've been talking to some acquaintances in the car trade and also to my son, who works for a "well known" company that offers to sell you a data check on your car to make sure there isn't finance, etc, outstanding. They try and check for Police markers, but with very limited(5 to 10%) success.

My conclusion, after talking to all parties, is thatwhen buying a used car once you know the registration number you should do exactly as you suggest, and ask the ANPR team at the County/Regional police HQ if there is a marker.
I'm told that some forces are helpful, others are not. In some cases a Freedom of Information Application is required....

As ANPR is used more and more I believe that unless there is some way to check easily, for example, a public website where all car registrations that have a Police market can be checked, buying a used car will become more and more like playing "Russian Roulette". Being stopped by Police who think you may be armed and dangerous isn't my idea of fun.

Best to stick to a Morgan....

That won't happen!
Open access to markers would allow the wrong people to see if their car is marked.
There is a lot of covert work done with car details included.
Would you want a drug dealer to discover his car has a marker?
That would result in a trail being lost.

My next door neighbour has suffered from both his registration plates being pinched off the car overnight, the thieves then using them on two cars to steal petrol from local filling stations and then cloned plates.
After the first incident, he used security plates that snap if forced off the car. They snapped! A month later the plates had been cloned! The number plate industry needs to have an overhaul and so called show plates banned.....problem then it buggers up us wanting black and silver plates!

There must be a ballance between the need to control crime and the rights of indviduals to go about their life.

It will change when there are enough complaints from innocent people being stopped, and possibly arrested, by agressive Police Officers.

As Jay's says, the number plate distribution system is broken.

I had my number plates nicked on a Sunday night, the police came and took details etc, they said they would probably be used for getting fuel and driving off without paying. As I couldn't get new ones until the next day I had to drive to work without them, I hadn't driven far before I got stopped by a traffic cop, I showed him the crime report but all he wanted to do was give me a very stern warning for driving without number plates.http://www.talkmorgan.com/images/icons/default/mad.gif

These days you should be thankful it's a real life cop! At least you can argue your case. If it's a remote computer or office of the misaligned somewhere, you're really stuck..!!

A few years ago we bet a friend he couldn't ride his bike from the Ace up to Leeds without a helmet, and not get stopped. He pulled on a woollen cap and said see you later - and got all the way there!! No stops, no panics and best of all, no serious head injuries (although we debated whether there would be anything worth saving inside there as he actually did it..)

Back on the thread again, the authorities have a duty to update the systems once the story is known, so plenty of names and collar numbers and references would be really handy for a while..

Oh, and police only get aggressive with brown +8 owners....apparently.... If you ever get tasered Peter, can someone video it for the rest of us, please

The balance will come by complaining about stops.
Also by bigger deterents/ punishment for the criminals.
Years ago I had a van. I used to get stopped late at night (courting hours!).
After a couple of stops the local police just waved at me...they knew I wasn't up to no good.
A marked car needs to be stopped unless the police doing it recognise it as the innocent one, as in my case with the van...they recognised me.
If in a atrange area then stops will occur.
Having worked in a police ops room I see the huge benefits from ANPR markers, but the police need more backing to put systems in place to sort out the finding/catching of the clones. If an ANPR camera picks up a car then it could be intercepted if police car was nearby.....
In practice many hits cannot be followed up due to resources and the perceived seriousness of the marker. No MOT? No tax? OK to chase?
Too many hits with too few resources.
Static cameras generate these hits but where are the resources to act?
mobile ANPR in cars allows a stop as the cars are next to each other so a straight forward decision. Hence the scenario in the original post of being pulled by a police car following.
If someone can come up with a good way of finding the clones then that is the answer. Until then there will be stops.
DVLA need to be updated about out of date markers too....reduced stops.
Trouble is, is there compatibility between systems?
Remember...we are dealing with public sector organisations...
I don't condone "arsey" officers but what about "arsey" motorists?
There are two sides in many cases....I know from experience.

As far as I can see in this story the police are still looking for the car with the cloned plates. The only solution is to have the real plates exchanged for another number. As long as the cloned plates are still in use there is the probability of getting stopped. Just be thankful you don't live in America where they shoot people who are stopped for a broken tail light. Hopefully the b@st@rd with the cloned plates will eventually get caught.