What Are Digital Plates and How Do They Work?

E-Plates are a new form of digital plates that have been introduced and are currently undergoing trialling in the United States. This new form of number plates uses RFID (radio frequency identification) tagging, which allows instant and automatic car identification. The plate contains a chip that stores information about the vehicle it’s assigned to, including insurance, tax and journeys.  Researchers believe that the introduction of the plates will ensure that information can be accessed instantly and efficiently.

The plates will be increasingly used by the Government as a replacement for your standard plates. Not only are the E-Plates easy to install, efficient and effective but they have added benefits such as being hard to clone and hard to remove. Both help the overall efficiency and ease of security checks! The ability to automatically check ID and cars will help to find stolen cars and reduce any un-road-worthy cars on the road (uninsured, damaged etc!). Less crucial, however, the transfer will also help to lower government spending on resources such as men, time, cars and much more. This is because the automatic chips will be picked up by the ANPR (automatic number plate recognition) cameras.

The plates arrive with computer chips, batteries and a fully comprehensive wireless communication system. In theory, there are possibilities that the plates will be able to display personal messages and advertisements when the vehicle is stopped / in traffic. This will help further cut down costs of billboards, advertisements on buildings and other such forms. The idea is still very much up in the air, however, as trials are taking place to see both the effectiveness and the safety of the displays.

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Price for Digital Plates vs Number Plates 

The plates stand at around £507, for initial purchase with a further monthly direct debit of £5 for the upkeep and registration. A big price, but is it worth it?

Furthermore, there are concerns over the control that the chip itself holds. With some claims that the chip is powerful enough to override car operations and stop the car randomly, it’s become a widespread fear that the plate may have too much control and needs to be turned down. Along the same lines of control, there are other worries among people that the providers to are limitless when it comes to the chip in the plate. As they can pretty much fully administer the chips, there is a chance that they would also be able to ‘turn off the car. Whether it’s because of a missed monthly payment, or a slight fault with the car – they could be able to control the car! This of course is a concern, and there is a while to go yet before all of the terms and conditions have been finely combed through for this type of thing.

Thirdly, concerns surrounding privacy are a big worry for those who are looking into the idea of E-Plates. Not only do these chips provide all government branches with documents, forms and identification, but, they also essentially mean that they can track the chip, the plate and thus the driver. For a lot of individuals, this is seen as an intrusion of personal privacy, as why should people be able to ‘follow’ you and see your personal whereabouts and actions. It is seen as a huge step over the boundary of privacy and can put a lot of people off of the idea of having one. The flaws in the argument however, are that they provide an extra wall of security when it comes to noncompliance with the law, as stolen cars and runaways will be able to be found easily and effectively. Furthermore, if you are worried about being ‘tracked’ because of your whereabouts, chances are that you’re most likely up to no good and shouldn’t be. Comply with the law and you’re pretty much good to go!

On the flip side, there are many positives about the upgraded technology for plates;

• Combatting non-compliance to help the Government with drivers and cars that are illegitimate, whether it be uninsured, untaxed or up to the full criminal activity.
• Helps the overall efficiency of the country, from automatic payments, parking access and toll crossing. The general flow of road usage could be vastly improved thus helping the ease of everyday life.
• Safety on roads. Whether or not the display banners are introduced, the chip can help the government to imply helpful safety information for drivers. From road traffic announcements, weather announcements, emergency services and even advice in disaster. The ability to converse in communication with the drivers could not only be helpful but maybe even life-saving.

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