- The number of cloned cars on the UK’s roads is increasing as criminals copy legitimate registration plates and use fake identities to drive vehicles that are stolen, unroadworthy and/or involved in unlawful activity.
- Latest Transport for London (TfL) data shows a 857% increase in the number of penalty charge notices (PCNs) being cancelled due to the car being a clone in April.
- There has been a 631% increase in PCNs being overturned due to cloning since the ultra-low emission zone (ULEZ) was expanded in October 2021.
- A driver with a ULEZ PCN will typically be charged £160, which will be reduced to £80 if they pay it within 14 days.
- Overall, vehicle crime has risen nationally by 7%, while one area of the UK has seen a 37% increase in vehicle theft recently.
- DVLA urged to make car cloning crime figures public.
A growing number of hard-pressed car owners are being hit with unfair PCNs for offences they did not commit due to car cloning, according to official data uncovered by heycar.
The online car marketplace has analysed previously unseen data from TfL on the number of ULEZ PCNs being cancelled due to the car being a clone of a legitimate vehicle.
It found a 631% increase in PCNs being overturned due to cloning since the ULEZ was expanded in October 2021 compared to the same period a year ago (641 fines between October 2020 and April 2021, and 4,687 between October 2021 and April 2022, inclusive).
Comparing April 2021 (when lockdown restrictions were being lifted in England) with April 2022 shows an even more alarming rise of 857% (from 61 fines to 584).
Car cloning can take various forms with a criminal either physically stealing a registration plate or having a fake plate illegally made to put on another vehicle. Cloned number plates are typically used on vehicles that are stolen, unroadworthy or used in illegal activity.
In the event of a PCN being issued due to a cloned car, the legitimate registered keeper will be required to provide evidence to satisfy the issuer of the ticket that their car was not at the time and place where the alleged offence occurred. If they don't appeal they face a ULEZ PCN charge of £160 (reduced to £80 if paid within 14 days).
Car cloning is part of a wider increase in vehicle crime. In England and Wales there was a 7% rise in vehicle theft in 2021 compared to 2020, while hotspot the West Midlands has reported a 37% spike since Covid-19 restrictions were lifted last year.
Figures are the 'tip of the iceberg'
Commenting on the findings, heycar’s Consumer Editor Sarah Tooze said: “These car cloning figures are the tip of the iceberg.
“Many drivers are unable to provide the evidence TfL requires to cancel the PCN due to the vehicle being a clone. Appealing the PCN process can also be complicated and intimidating, which means many more victims will pay the fine to avoid the stress and end the matter.
“The true number of cloned cars in London and elsewhere in the UK will be much higher but there are no official, national statistics which are publicly available. We are urging the DVLA to publish car cloning figures so drivers can see the true scale of the problem within the UK.
“There needs to be greater transparency around this serious crime and tighter regulations to help prevent innocent motorists being stung with fines or, worse still, losing thousands of pounds by unknowingly buying a cloned vehicle.”
The Government has a role to play in clamping down on car cloning as although drivers need to prove their identity when buying a number plate from legitimate sources there is still the opportunity to buy number plates on the internet or to have number plates made without checks being carried out.
Further checking and verification of vehicles that have been written-off and repaired before they are put back on the road, and the use of anti-tampering screws to secure number plates to cars could help prevent car cloning.
As well as better preventative measures, the appeals process for victims needs to be improved. heycar research found car cloning victims can be forced to go to great lengths to prove their innocence (as the case study below demonstrates) with some local authorities and transport bodies who issue the PCNs requiring information from the police which can be difficult to obtain.
Tooze continued: “Car cloning victims should be treated as such. Instead, they can face a ‘guilty until proven innocent’ mentality, which only adds to an already stressful situation.”
Innocent motorist Marc Cramsie faced fines of up to £1,070
Marc Cramsie, aged 72 from London, was faced with six different PCNs, potentially costing up to £1,070, when he was a victim of car cloning in 2021.
Three of the PCNs were from Transport for London (TfL) for the congestion charge, two were from Lambeth Council for failing to comply with a prohibition on certain types of vehicle, and being in a bus lane, and one was from Brighton and Hove City Council for being in a bus lane.
Although Marc paid the first fine he received he quickly realised his vehicle had been cloned when more PCNs arrived and he decided to appeal - a process which took six months in total, despite evidence of his innocence.
"I wasn't even in the country at the time"
“For the PCN for Brighton I wasn’t even in the country at the time - I had my flight details and my boarding cards but that didn’t impress the council,” he said.
Marc’s car also had a resident parking sticker on the windscreen - the cloned car didn’t. But that fact did not overturn the PCNs either.
Both TfL and Brighton and Hove City Council wanted evidence that the police were investigating Marc’s car being cloned.
“They wanted the police station details and a crime reference number but when I rang up the police they logged my call but did not give me a crime reference as they couldn’t treat it as a crime,” he said.
When a driver reports their vehicle has been cloned in the UK the police put a marker onto the Police National Computer database to say that that vehicle is likely to be a duplicate identity and that allows officers to potentially stop that vehicle and verify who the owner of that vehicle is.
Sussex Police assisted Marc by writing to Brighton and Hove City Council to confirm he had spoken to them, while the Met Police asked Marc to request that Lambeth email them to receive confirmation that the incident had been accepted by them.
'Mismatch' between councils and police
“There was a mismatch between the way that the council thinks the police should operate and the way the police actually do operate,” he said.
Marc also reported the matter to Action Fraud, the UK's national reporting centre for fraud and cyber crime, which generated a case number but “that didn’t seem to make a difference either”.
Eventually, Marc took his case to tribunal and was successful.
“The adjudicator spotted that the number plate on the cloned car had two bolt holes in it - that seemed to be the deciding factor,” he said.
Marc then wrote to TfL and Lambeth Council to say that Brighton had allowed his appeal and they both also cancelled their PCNs. However, Lambeth would not refund the initial PCN which Marc had paid as he had lost his right to appeal
“The presumption very much seems to be that you're guilty until you can prove your innocence,” Marc said.
“Somebody less dogged than me might be frightened into just paying up when they don’t need to.”
Motorists have statutory right to challenge PCNs
As part of its response to heycar’s freedom of information request, TfL said: “On receipt of a penalty a motorist has a statutory right to challenge the penalty by submitting a representation to us. If a motorist contacts us stating that the penalty has been issued due to the vehicle being cloned, we ask for evidence to support this. On receipt of satisfactory evidence the representation will be accepted and the PCN cancelled.
“If no evidence is provided, or we are unable to verify the claim that the vehicle has been cloned, the representation will be rejected. When a representation is rejected the motorist is granted a right of appeal to an Independent Adjudicator at London Tribunals.”
TfL added that following a recent review of its data it identified that the cancellation reason for a small number of PCNs were recorded in error. This has meant that some penalties recorded as being cancelled as ‘cloned vehicle’ were actually cancelled for other reasons and therefore may be subject to minor amendments.
Car cloning FAQs
What is car cloning?
Car cloning is when a criminal copies the identity of a legally registered vehicle. They do this by physically stealing a registration plate or having a fake plate illegally produced to put on another vehicle. Cloned number plates are typically used on vehicles that are stolen, unroadworthy or used in illegal activity.
The result is two cars on the road with the same registration plates - one which is legitimate and one which is a ‘clone’ of the legitimate vehicle.
Typically, the criminal will then use the cloned car to carry out further crime or to avoid speeding fines, parking fines, tolls or other charges such as the London congestion charge, ultra low emission zone charge or other clean air zone charges, or to steal petrol.
The criminal may also attempt to sell the cloned vehicle. To do this they may alter the vehicle identification number (VIN) on the illegal car and issue a fraudulent logbook so the car appears legitimate.
How do I report car number plate cloning?
If you are a victim of car cloning you should report it to the police. They will then be able to put a marker onto the Police National Computer database to say that that vehicle is likely to be a duplicate identity and that allows officers to potentially stop that vehicle and verify who the owner of that vehicle is.
You should also notify the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) as number plates are registered with the DVLA. It might issue you a replacement number plate.
If you have received a penalty charge notice (PCN) for the cloned vehicle you should contact the issuing authority with evidence that the fine does not relate to your vehicle.
How do I appeal a PCN for a cloned car?
The appeals process may vary depending on who issued the ticket - a local authority/council, TfL (for the congestion charge, ultra-low emission zone or red route), dart charge or a private car park operator.
It’s important not to pay the ticket as you will lose your right to appeal.
If the PCN was issued by a local authority or TfL you appeal directly to them. You will have 28 days to make a formal challenge (known as a representation). You should explain that you have been a victim of car cloning and provide evidence to support this such as a police incident reference number or a crime reference (if issued), photographs showing any differences between your car and the cloned vehicle or evidence of your whereabouts at the time of the offence (such as a train ticket or receipts).
You can use our free parking penalty template letter here.
If your formal challenge is rejected you will have another 28 days to either pay the PCN or to appeal to an independent tribunal. It is free to take your case to an independent tribunal. However, if your appeal is not upheld by the adjudicator you should pay the PCN otherwise the council could take you to court which may affect your credit rating and result in paying court costs as well as the PCN.
If the PCN was issued by a private operator and it rejects your appeal, check if it is a member of an accredited trade association. If the operator is a member of the British Parking Association (BPA) you can appeal to POPLA (Parking on Private Land Appeals). If it is a member of of the International Parking Community (IPC) you can appeal to IAS (Independent Appeals Service).
How can I prevent my car from being cloned?
Criminals will often look online to find a car that is the same make, model and colour as the stolen vehicle - either advertised on car sales sites or on social media, according to Mark Silvester, crime reduction manager at West Midlands Police.
“I cringe sometimes when I see people posting about their new wheels on Facebook or Instagram or Twitter because there, for everybody to see, is their number plate,” he says.
It’s best not to publish photos of your vehicle online, or, if you have to, blur the number plate.
To prevent a number plate from physically being stolen, Silvester recommends fixing it with anti-tamper security screws.
There are also things you can do to make it easier to appeal any motoring offences, should your vehicle be cloned.
One of the best ways to protect yourself is to use a vehicle tracking device or a dash cam, according to Hojol Uddin, head of motoring at JMW Solicitors.
“That can show you were not in a given time or place,” he says
He also advises taking 360-degree images of your car and photographing anything distinctive about the car.
“In the event you did have a number plate cloning issue you can show the date stamp of the picture and make representations of any differences,” he says.
How can I avoid buying a cloned car?
It’s important to carry out a number of checks when you are buying a used car for sale in the UK to help avoid buying one that has been cloned. As well as the DVLA's online vehicle enquiry service to check if the vehicle is taxed and has an MoT (if it's older than three years), do a history check online.
When you go to see the vehicle, make sure it is at the seller's home address and ideally take someone with you who has knowledge of cars.
Ask for the V5C (vehicle log book) and check it has a DVL watermark. Also check the issue date and the serial number.
Don't be afraid to ask the seller to prove their identity and that they are the person named on the V5.
"Ask them to produce a passport or a driving licence or something that gives secondary competence that they are the person who lives at that address and can legitimately sell the car," advises Mark Silvester, crime reduction manager at West Midlands Police.
Check the vehicle identification number (VIN), which is located on the dashboard and on the driver’s door post, hasn't been tampered with and matches the V5C.
Ask for the vehicle's handbooks and service history. As an additional step, you could contact the garage that has done the work and confirm the details.
Also make sure there are two car keys and that both work.
For added peace of mind, you could get the car professionally inspected.
Be very wary about how you pay for the car - paying in cash will give you no protection if the car turns out to be a clone and you risk losing both the car and the money you paid for it.
Silvester also warns against buying a car that is being sold for less than 70% of its true market value.
"Do your research, do your checks, and if doesn't feel right then just walk away," he says.
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