Friday 22nd May

PistonHeads Auctions: now featuring number plates!

By popular demand, we're expanding PH Auctions to include cherished registrations

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It’s been just under three years since we kicked off PistonHeads Auctions to complement the classifieds and give you even more ways to buy and sell. In that time, we’ve sold over 700 cars with our digital gavel, from immaculate modern classics to supercars.

But as anyone who has spent too long browsing our marketplace knows, a truly special car often deserves the perfect final touch. Which is why, due to genuine demand, we are officially adding cherished number plates to the PH Auctions lineup.

Whether you’re looking to unlock the value of a great registration that’s currently sitting on a retention certificate, or you're hunting for that elusive, definitive combination of letters to complete your pride and joy, we’re now open for business.

Because managing two fee structures sounds like a needless complication for everyone involved, we’re keeping things straightforward. The rules for plates are exactly the same as they are for cars:

• Zero seller fees: listing and selling costs you absolutely nothing. You keep 100% of the hammer price
• Buyer’s premium: a transparent 6 per cent + VAT, subject to a minimum fee of £695 + VAT.

Let’s face it, there is quite literally no better place in the UK to showcase a premium registration than in front of our massive, highly knowledgeable audience. 

Our first batch of plates is live right now, which you can browse here. If you’ve got one to sell, drop us a line at [e-mail] to get a free valuation today.

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Browse all cars and plates on PistonHeads Auctions

Photo credit: Chaydon Ford

[Globulus Rift]

Last week a mate of mine told me that while in his first job, a work colleague's mother bought herself a private plate.

Her birthday was 24th July and her surname was Cox, so the plate read COX 247.

He ended up being fired for mercilessly repeating how the guy's mother liked COX 24 7.

[Noe]

Excellent. I’ve several on retention I want sell and as mostly overseas and have a hatred of .coms like cherished plates etc as all bought from original dvla auctions

Good improvement!

[drmike37]

A buyer's fee of £695+VAT is pretty punchy on a £500 plate.

[LRDefender]

I bought a private number plate and it changed my life..!!!

[nismo48]

Any chance of "AMG1" coming up

[Slowlygettingit]

drmike37 said:

A buyer's fee of £695+VAT is pretty punchy on a £500 plate.

That is a nice subtle understatement

Although those first few will be a little more

[ex-devonpaul]

drmike37 said:

A buyer's fee of £695+VAT is pretty punchy on a £500 plate.

Probably cheaper to change my name by deed poll to match the car.

[p4cks]

drmike37 said:

A buyer's fee of £695+VAT is pretty punchy on a £500 plate.

Wild. This will sink like a stone unless the buyer's fee is revised to something more in line with reality

[Gingerjust28]

p4cks said:

drmike37 said:

A buyer's fee of £695+VAT is pretty punchy on a £500 plate.

Wild. This will sink like a stone unless the buyer's fee is revised to something more in line with reality

Have to Agree with them statements. DVLA only £250 up gonna be hard to swallow that cost..

[Nobody13]

Buyer’s fee seems more like daylight robbery.

[Dr G]

Indeed, that fee is silly.

6%? OK, whatever. You charge what you charge, but give it a minimum of £100 or something.

[iphonedyou]

Surely that buyer's premium is a mistake.

[Shaoxter]

drmike37 said:

A buyer's fee of £695+VAT is pretty punchy on a £500 plate.

Guessing the target market won't be £500 plates, but still a crazy minimum fee.
TBF for higher value plates the fee is significantly lower than CC which is 10%+VAT. Still a lot considering there is next to zero due diligence/photography/descriptive writing required as is the case with cars.

[RichardHMorris]

Shaoxter said:

Guessing the target market won't be £500 plates, but still a crazy minimum fee.
TBF for higher value plates the fee is significantly lower than CC which is 10%+VAT. Still a lot considering there is next to zero due diligence/photography/descriptive writing required as is the case with cars.

Yes, the hammer price will need to be £11.600 for that to work.

[RichardHMorris]

I'm selling a plate at the moment, for which I'd accept £266 ... plus a buyer's fee of £834 (the same as £695 plus VAT).

[LotusOmega375D]

The registration on the featured car is woeful.

[Ben Lowden]

drmike37 said:

A buyer's fee of £695+VAT is pretty punchy on a £500 plate.

We completely understand that our minimum fee doesn't suit lower-value plates. Our platform is built for premium and dateless registrations that carry a higher value and will be more desirable at auction.

Because we charge 6% (+ VAT) compared to the industry standard of 10% to 15%, a buyer purchasing a £20,000 plate on PistonHeads will save nearly £1,000 in fees compared to our main competitors.

We get that this won't be for everyone and if you want to set your own price and sell a plate on your own terms, you're very welcome to do this in our Parts & Plates forum here.

[Nickp82]

Globulus Rift said:

Last week a mate of mine told me that while in his first job, a work colleague's mother bought herself a private plate.

Her birthday was 24th July and her surname was Cox, so the plate read COX 247.

He ended up being fired for mercilessly repeating how the guy's mother liked COX 24 7.

[newbie101]

4.5 cars a week sounds like a very small number to me. Not like the site is packed full of 7 figure Hypercars either. Can't see £800 per plate is going to boost the sales figures by much but I hope I'm wrong as someone has to fund the maintenance on Shed's Amstrad.

[Geertsen]

Ben Lowden said:

drmike37 said:

A buyer's fee of £695+VAT is pretty punchy on a £500 plate.

We completely understand that our minimum fee doesn't suit lower-value plates. Our platform is built for premium and dateless registrations that carry a higher value and will be more desirable at auction.

Because we charge 6% (+ VAT) compared to the industry standard of 10% to 15%, a buyer purchasing a £20,000 plate on PistonHeads will save nearly £1,000 in fees compared to our main competitors.

We get that this won't be for everyone and if you want to set your own price and sell a plate on your own terms, you're very welcome to do this in our Parts & Plates forum here.

The same thing happens over on CollectingWatches. It feels like an intentional ploy to weed out the chaff and deter lower value items being listed. Not very inclusive, especially as PistonHeads is a community where members intermingle and connect regardless of wealth. It’s a welcome addition and one which I will enjoy but a very elitist execution.