The Highway Code is changing to track this fashionable offense – thousands of drivers already caught

This popular trick to avoid speed cameras has prompted the authorities to establish a new Highway Code.

For some drivers, any means necessary to avoid paying a fine is acceptable. While the simplest way to avoid getting a ticket is to scrupulously follow the rules of the Highway Code, every day thousands of drivers commit offenses, sometimes risking their lives and those of other road users. These public hazards never lack imagination when it comes to trying to evade punishment. Among the tricks used to avoid detection by law enforcement, "faking" license plates is very popular.

The phenomenon has become so widespread in one European country that authorities have decided to amend the Highway Code. Adopted on June 13, a new Highway Code will be implemented in Greece in a few months. It will be significantly toughened in an attempt to reduce the number of violations related to license plate alterations. Starting next fall, new penalties will come into effect to more severely punish anyone who modifies their license plates.

Any driver who covers their license plate with reflective film, a sticker, or even a simple piece of tape will have their license revoked and receive a €150 fine. Those using fake plates or plates stolen from other drivers will face a prison sentence of up to one year. According to the Greek website Newsauto, authorities have recently issued instructions to intensify checks, and thousands of vehicles have been detected with fake or illegible license plates.

Greece isn't the only country affected by this scourge. In France, law enforcement is also seeing an increase in license plate trafficking. The Highway Code is perfectly clear: it is strictly forbidden to affix stickers to the license plate used to identify the vehicle and its owner—even if it's to cover the regional logo and department number—as is tape, adhesive film, or any substance sprayed to attempt to make it unreadable by speed cameras.

Driving with an illegible license plate is punishable by a class 4 fine in France. It will cost you 135 euros. Using fake license plates is punished even more severely; the offender can face a 5-year prison sentence. The fine can reach 3,750 euros, and the driver risks a 3-year driving ban and permanent vehicle seizure. Despite the severity of these penalties, too many motorists continue to seek out schemes to go unnoticed.