LACKAWANNA COUNTY, Pa. — Peeling license plates are a problem for law enforcement. In fact, you could face a fine if you're pulled over, and your plate is illegible.
State police urge drivers to apply to receive a replacement plate from PennDOT.
"Your vehicle is registered, and that registered vehicle comes back to you. So it makes it very difficult for us when we're out on patrol, you know to be able to look at a license plate to be able to get that identification off it," said Trooper Robert Urban, Pennsylvania State Police.
According to PennDOT, a license plate is deemed illegible when one or more numbers or letters cannot be read from 50 feet away or if the license plate shows any blistering, peeling, discoloration, or loss of reflectivity.
Non-vanity license plates that start with letter 'D', 'E' or 'F', and truck registration plates that start with letter 'Y' are the oldest on the road and need to be replaced, according to PennDOT.
If you have a license plate beginning with a 'D', 'E', 'F' or 'Y,' you will get a new registration plate the next time your registration plate is transferred to a different vehicle.
Police can give you a form to get the license plate replaced.
"You're able to have a law enforcement sign it, show that the plate is bad, they send it in, and PennDOT will issue you a new plate for free," explained Trooper Urban.
You can also get a form for a replacement plate when your car is in for inspection.
Northeast Title and Tag offers a service for a minimal fee to help people navigate the forms and ensure that the plate gets to you quickly, or if you choose, you can pay to get a newly issued plate over the counter.
"If someone does one of these forms on their own from home, they may miss a signature line, and six weeks later, they have no license plate, so it's easier when they come in. They speak to us we're very knowledgeable on this type of these types of items, and we can get it into PennDOT," said Joseph Grasso, Northeast Title & Tag.
Troopers can pull you over for having these unreadable license plates, but you can also be pulled over for having other license plate violations.
"You cannot have anything over the top of it that will cover the letters or numbers or the state of issuance at the bottom," said Trooper Urban.
For more information on how you can replace your plate, click here.
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