When it comes to private number plates, there’s definitely still money to be made. Back in 2014, the number plate “25 O” sold for a staggering £500,000 at a DVLA auction. So now could be the right time to make yourself some money with your own private number plate.

There are a few hoops that you need to jump through first though if you want to sell your cherished number plate. The first thing you need to do it get it valued. This may seem simple in itself, but a valuation is not often an accurate way to determine a number plate’s worth. Some experts have over 30 years’ experience of valuing number plates, and are often unable to come to an agreement between themselves. They can also get the value very wrong.

What’s it Worth?

Just with most things under auction, the value of a number plate is only as high as what the highest bidder is willing to pay for it. The private number plate market – just like any other – has its trends, and there are different times when different people will consider number plates more or less valuable. It all depends who is interested in your number plate on the day.

Generic initial numberplates tend to gain the most interest because naturally they appeal to a much broader market, and generally aren’t a huge amount of money to buy. If the market happens to be saturated with number plates including similar initials to the one you’re selling, then yours will automatically be devalued. It’s surprising, but just because a number plate looks interesting, it doesn’t mean it will sell well. For example, the number plate 6 FFF looks great, but will only really appeal to someone with the initials “FFF”, so there would be little shared interest on a number plate like this.

The speed in which a private number plate will sell will depend on a number of factors. As mentioned previously there will always be a market for initial number plates, but some plates take a bit longer to sell. For example, funny phrases or words may not sell to quickly because not everyone will agree that they are funny.

Finding a Broker

Another problem you may encounter when trying to sell your number plate, is the fact that there aren’t many people out there who are willing to sell them for you. If you want a brand new privatenumber plate, then places like the DVLA website are good. But if you want to sell your own private number plate which is now second hand of course, then you have limited options. Your best option is to use one of the few reputable and trusted private number plate specialists, one of which is New Reg. Companies like New Reg will advertise your number plate on their own website and search for a buyer for you. New Reg promise to offer the lowest price for people buying second-hand number plates, so you’re much more likely to sell your number plate with them.

Auction websites such as eBay are also great places to buy and sell second hand private number plates, however do so with caution. If you’re selling a plate, you can enter your own reserve price so that you can be confident that you won’t undersell it if there is limited interest. The problem with eBay is that it’s hard to find the right buyer for your number plate, as it’s not a targeted audience. It can therefore take many months or even years to sell a private number plate on eBay.