Florida Highway Patrol warns public of strict enforcement of illegally wrapped license plates
Press release from Florida Division of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – This week, the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) issued a warning to drivers with Florida license plates that have been airbrushed, vinyl-wrapped, or customized. Such alterations violate the legal tag requirements under Florida law for reflectivity and safety enhancements and can potentially impact the yellow validation stickers. Driving on a public roadway with these altered plates displayed is against the law and violates Section 320.061, Florida Statutes, which prohibits the unlawful altering of a Florida License Plate.
Tag alterations like these are frequently found in communities across Florida, and the FHP is being proactive in raising awareness of the law. This is to ensure that individuals who may not realize they are breaking the law by altering their tags are informed.
Since 2020, citations for unlawful alteration of a Florida license plate have increased over 98%. The citation is classified as a moving violation and includes a state fine of $60, three points on your license, and then an accompanying fee set by the county in which the citation was issued.
If you have altered your Florida tag and cannot return it to its original condition, you will need to get a replacement Florida license plate from your local tax collector. Troopers encountering altered tags can seize the tag, requiring the owner to apply for a new license plate.
Florida offers more than 100 specialty license plates for various organizations, with the proceeds from the sales going directly to support the causes they represent. Additionally, personalized license plates can be ordered in person at a motor vehicle service center.
What is a motor vehicle service center? And where are they located?
People who need to be told not to alter their tags are not smart enough to drive a vehicle to begin with. How about the idiots who hide their tags under the dark plastic? They are all over and never pulled over that I’ve seen.
I have seen a couple of these in town…
It’s unlikely GPD will do much about this type of violation; city leaders are unlikely to authorize the issuance of a citation for such a trivial traffic infraction.
They rarely pull over drivers running red lights or driving while texting and those pose more of a danger to the community than wrapping a license plate.
Let’s add not having babies in their proper seating
I got pulled and ticketed years ago for having a tiny, less than 1 inch, unicorn sticker on my tag that impeded nothing.
I would think that FHP would better serve the public by spending less time on stickers and fancied up tags (as long as the number is clearly visible) and more time on enforcing driving laws. SMH
How nice. Cops cannot stand not being able to legally stop cars for “DWB.” But.
“Adam-12 has spotted a suspicious BMW with 24 inch spinner gold rims and a gold chain circling the license plate. Justified to stop him, get consent to search the car, find a blunt, and take him to jail where the DA will drop the charges.”
Add this to “air freshener dangling from the rearview mirror” and “stopped with bumper one inch over the white line at a stop sign” and DWB is alive and well in the south. Read arrest reports at the clerk’s office if you don’t believe it.
Can’t stand it can you? Move to California then
Can someone describe illegally wrapped? Is it a typical tag holder?
Part of this the fault of the State. Too many Personalized tags and too many specialized tags. Once it gets started everyone thinks it’s OK to decorate.
They should just sell a white tag, embossed with the number, and “Florida”. Then let people make their own custom plates. As long as there is adequate contrast to clearly read the number and Florida.