Motorists are being warned about a crackdown targeting illegal licence plates.

The Transport Control Department said the warning came amid an increase in personalised plates which do not conform to legal specifications.

A spokeswoman said that, in most cases, offenders were not aware they were breaking the rules.

She added that in some cases people were using approved licence plates to pass their vehicle inspection test and then replacing the legal plates with personalised ones.

The spokeswoman said some plates contained lettering, pictures or objects that made them illegible or difficult to read.

She added: “These licence plates are a matter of concern for the TCD as they present a safety hazard and are ultimately not in compliance with the law.”

The spokeswoman said that all licence plates must have a white reflective background with black markings.

The exceptions are loaner vehicles, which have a yellow background, and rental cars, which have a white background with red markings.

Additionally, all letters or figures on plates should be the same size.

She added: “Letters and figures should be seven-sixteenths of an inch broad and the total width of the space taken by any letter or figure, at least one and seven-sixteenth inches.

“The space between any two letters or any two figures shall be three-eighths of an inch, and the space between figures shall be one and five-eighths inches.

“There shall be a margin, between the nearest part of any letter or figure and the top, bottom or sides of the plate, of at least half an inch.”

No other letters, figures or designs are allowed to be place near to, over or upon any letters or figures on the licence plate.

Only personalised licence plates issued by the TCD are allowed.

The spokeswoman said that TCD traffic officers would be conducting “routine checks to ensure motorists are in compliance with these regulations”.

For more information contact TCD at 292-1271.