It's challenging to pinpoint the exact location with the most owners of personalised number plates in the UK, as data may vary over time.
However, areas with high population densities and affluence, such as London and the surrounding regions, often have a significant number of private number plate owners.
Whilst most registration owners buy private plates to represent their personal name or initials, It is reported that 28% of UK car owners have named their car. Within that group, a further 87% have bought a personal number plate to display the name given to the car!
Contrary to some information found in articles online, suggesting that you can find out the registered keeper of vehicle, It is not possible to find out who owns a specific private number plate. This information is held securely by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and they will not release it due to strict Data Protection regulations. The whereabouts of many personalised numbers are made public by certain owners who do not wish to remain "private" or there celebrity status has made it difficult to do so.
Vehicles with private number plates that get spotted parked up , frequent the same car park location or the same property driveway, it's easy to determine the whereabouts or location of where the owner lives, but this information is not available in the public domain.
John Collins, Businessman who deals in sales of collectable Ferrari vehicles, John Collins purchased 25 O from auction for £518,000. This was the UK's most expensive number to have sold at DVLA Auction so the owners information was widely reported following the sale in 2014. The 1962-1964 Ferrari 250 GTO is one of the most valuable classic cars that exist today. Whilst Afzal Kahn a businessman from West Yorkshire, Kahn Design, bought F1 in 2008 and remains the owner to this day.
Social media images often show luxury vehicles and an array of supercars with valuable and interesting personalised number plates on. Lamborghini's, McLaren's, Rolls Royce's, Bentleys, Range Rovers etc. Very rare short plates 1 letter and 1 number are often photographed on London's streets around Knightsbridge and Mayfair and shared across social media. Many of these vehicles could be under foreign ownership such as alot of the high value property in Central London. However, some are owned by businesses's such as private limousine /chauffeuring services and hotels. The famous Savoy Hotel own S8 VOY which adorned a black Rolls Royce which transports guests to various shopping areas within the City.
Our recent data analysis suggests there are more customers residing in the following areas
London , Greater London and surrounding counties, Surrey, Berkshire, Essex, Kent.
Birmingham & the West Midlands , Warwickshire, Staffordshire & Worcestershire
The North, Manchester/Chester, Preston, Lancashire. Doncaster in Yorkshire
The North East, Newcastle upon Tyne & Durham,
In Scotland , Glasgow & Edinburgh dominate due to the population density but owners can be found in locations up in the Highlands and on the remote islands.
It's not always areas of affluence (such as the Cotswolds, which spans from South Warwickshire/Worcestershire, down to Gloucestershire/Oxfordshire) where number plate owners are located since many personalised number plates can be purchased for just a few hundred pounds. However it is true that the more valuable, dateless registrations will generally found in the more wealthy areas where for example a high proportion of property prices are above the national average.
In summary, you will see a high proportion of personalised number plates in high density areas and in UK major cities but you will also find private plates in every corner, every nook and cranny of the United Kingdom. Since the time when cherished number plates were first issued the distribution was very much nationwide through the hundreds of local and county councils. It wasnt really until the 1970's when personalised numbers began changing hands and a secondhand market started to develop.
