licence plates

United States
January 17, 2008 8:18pm CST
A woman said her son found his license plate missing so he called the police to file a report. They told him people were stealing the plates to get free gas. Given the rise in gas prices, people have taken to stealing license plates, putting them on their car, then getting gas and running. The gas station will have "your" license plate # and you could be in trouble for "pump and run." Check your car periodically to be sure you still have a plate. If you should find it missing, file a report immediately!!! Keep an eye on your license plate! Make sure you always know it's there! When the license plate is reported as the "drive off vehicle", it's YOU they contact! Be aware!!!! Be aware of your license plates, most of us never look to see if they're there.
5 people like this
10 responses
• United States
18 Jan 08
how horrible - I wonder how long it would take me to notice mine was missing? Probably when I get pulled over! Thanks for the info.
3 people like this
@k1tten (2318)
• United States
18 Jan 08
I can't believe people have sunk this low. I mean, come on. Gas is probably cheeper there than here in West Virginia. It's sad people are that pathetic.
2 people like this
• United States
18 Jan 08
kitten i live in west virginia you getting enough snow?
@k1tten (2318)
• United States
18 Jan 08
I am actually. I'm ready for spring.
1 person likes this
• United States
18 Jan 08
My aunt has had the licence plates stole off her car 3 times already. It is crazy what people will do for free gas. The poliece told her that when they steal them they also use them for various other crimes that can be much worse. If you find yor plates missing you should call the police as soon as you can to avoid any problems for yourself.
1 person likes this
@kazey901 (173)
• United States
18 Jan 08
I have had a family member that this happened to. So another great tip would be to take a picture of your license plate separately and also on your car and pictures of your car also so if you are placed with the blame they can pull the tapes of the store to see if your car was the one driven. It's a great way to keep out of trouble!
2 people like this
• United States
18 Jan 08
This actually happened to me with my National Guard Plates a few years back. I was told they were stealing Military plates....I never got it back but the next year I got an excise tax for a car I didn't own.
2 people like this
• China
18 Jan 08
It's horrible.And it's impossible to stop everyone from stealing,Maybe It can be true when everyone is richly enough at one day. If someone has been stealed,He must report to the police,The policeman may help u to get the license plates back,and the stealer will have no chance
1 person likes this
@sedel1027 (17846)
• Cupertino, California
18 Jan 08
I have heard of that happening before. I am lucky it is extremely hard to get the plate off of both of our cars, so we don't have to worry about it. Plus if your plates are stolen you really can't drive until you get new plates, so if you report them stolen, I doubt anyone would bother coming after the original owner. I have also heard about people taking pictures of plates and making their own fakes to get free gas.
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
18 Jan 08
That is good to know. We do not have that problem here because there is no free gas unless you win a contest, but with many of the people down in the States having just part time work and not being able to afford to drive much and with the shock of the rising gas prices (it looks like you may have to pay the same down there as we do up here), people cheating and stealing license plates must be a big issue. If your license plate is missing, you will also get in trouble with the police.
@kylanie (1205)
• United States
18 Jan 08
I am sorry to cut in on youre story but I thought I might add this here to it.Me and my fiance was in his truck going down the road and a cop pulled us over and when they talked to us they said the plates was out and when he checked it close he said I am sorry because they did not change the color of the number tag.
1 person likes this
• United States
22 Jan 08
I've heard of that happening here in Florida too. They also steal them so that they can drive on the toll roads without having to pay a fee. Same thing happens as the gas station, a picture is taken of the license plate and then the owner of the plate gets a ticket.