Criminal Using Cloned/Duplicated Number Plate on Motorbike

Lnansnake on 11/12/2018 - 23:51

Hi,

I was having unusually pleasant days for a while and then this happened like "storm after the calm or whatever". An infringement turned up at my house in my name. I opened it up to see that I was caught speeding by one of the cameras. But, when I checked the date of the incident, it seemed odd. I was at work that day. I looked up the offence photo and was shocked to see another motorbike with a whole different number plate layout, but my registration number. I instantly found out that it was not me from the tail tidy and the exhaust of the bike (mine's single and the culprit is driving a double outlet).

I immediately put a review request on the fine and then called Victoria Police, who referred me to Civil compliance, who referred me to Vicroads for a numberplate change (in my expense).

Victoria Police also told me they can do nothing more, and its all going to give me inconvenience till I change the plates (Duh!)

I was hoping for a system where the plate number is tracked for/traced. But that a big No No. All that I can do is wait for the fines to cancel and get the number plates. All with my hard earned money.

I also received a toll invoice today, in the same rego.

Any idea what I can do to not get into more shit? Thanks in advance.

Automotive

Comments

  • trustnoone on 12/12/2018 - 00:05
    +1

    Any idea what I can do to not get into more shit? Thanks in advance.

    I wonder if you can make a police report still? Since I'm assuming its illegal? They might not do anything about it but I'd ask for a report anyway because if anything where to come up you'd always have the report noting the issue (may help for legal trouble?).

    Also definitely make sure the infringement department knows of the issue, I think they likely have a full blown legal team who might go after the guy if he gets caught by police or similar.

    • nansnake on 12/12/2018 - 11:55

      I guess I can make a police report. The problem with the issue is that there is no clarity in who can do what. At the moment, one of the police stations(after wandering to several), has an officer who is willing to help me out by giving the report and flagging.

  • dcep on 12/12/2018 - 00:14
    -1

    wonder if your rego is flagged and police cars equipped with 360 no. plates scanner,

    if not you can also copy and use other's no. plate

    • nansnake on 12/12/2018 - 11:56

      Going to flag the rego today. I did change my plates. :(

  • 87percent on 12/12/2018 - 00:32
    +1

    Regarding the toll notice, just continually contact CityLink about it. Happened to me about 6 months ago where my written off car, someone was using the numberplate to make daily trips on Eastlink. Took about 3 months before they finally updated their system but in that time I received about 15 toll notices.

    • nansnake on 12/12/2018 - 11:57

      Yes, I am intending to do follow ups often. But this is majorly inconvenient since having a fulltime job and other commitments. Sad to know that nothing else can be done

  • spackbace on 12/12/2018 - 00:45

    In WA, plates can be swapped over the counter for about $12-$15. Why do you have to wait?

    • [Deactivated] on 12/12/2018 - 01:50
      +1

      I assume because there is an outstanding fine associated with that plate plus vicroads red tape.

    • pegaxs on 12/12/2018 - 08:56

      It’s easy to swap over, but it sucks balls if it’s a personalised plate you paid $500+ for. Losing that to a plate thief would suck.

      Regular issue plates are no problem. Very cheap and easy to replace when this happens. Had the same thing happen with my car when I lived in Melbourne.

      • spackbace on 12/12/2018 - 10:45

        Yeah losing a personalised plate would be shit because just re-issuing it won't fix the issue :/

        • nansnake on 12/12/2018 - 11:58
          +2

          Mine's a normal plate. Thanks god. Changed it today. Feeling somewhat relaxed but cautious now.

  • RockyRaccoon on 12/12/2018 - 05:41
    +2

    I don’t understand your request for the track/trace option.

    As you said until this fake plate is found, you will get toll notices etc while your bike has that plate associated with it. Do you really want that grief?

    Yes it’s not fair you have to pay for the new plates, but that’s the system nothing you or I can do about that. Life is like that. Change the plates, and hope the crim gets caught and isn’t near you (they won’t see your new plates and do another change)

    VicRoads website indicates this is $18.50 is that what you were told?

    • nansnake on 12/12/2018 - 12:00

      Yes, swapped my plates for a new one for $18.50 precisely.
      Rather than the innocent having to deal with the repercussion, the criminals should pay too. Thats what I think they should trace/track those plates.

  • pegaxs on 12/12/2018 - 08:50
    +5

    Go into vic roads and change your plate (don’t forget to keep the change of plate receipt). Changing the plate won’t stop the toll notices or fines arriving, but at least you can write back and say “that isn’t my rego any more, it was changed” and they will ask for evidence, you supply the new plate details and they will update the system.

    Take photos of your bike and keep proof of where you are. It’s about the only thing I like about the google maps keeping a log of where I have been.

    And I think the fee for changing the number plate is a cheap way to get it sorted. And the police are 100% correct. There is absolutely nothing they can do about it until that person is flagged on one of their cars. They can’t go to the guys house, because he is using your rego, so any checks would just lead to your house. But as soon as you change your plate, that plate will be marked as unregistered/stolen and then the riders days are numbered…

  • [Deactivated] on 12/12/2018 - 08:54
    +2

    It's another one of those infuriating products of enforecement's soft touch when dealing with actual criminals.

    If you're a law abiding citizens, you wouldn't dream of driving stolen plates. Driving uninsured is probably as fast and loose as it gets (bad idea anyway). They love sticking us with speeding fines and penalize us for trivial technicalities.

    Faced with actual flagrant abuse of the law, well…

    • ThithLord on 12/12/2018 - 09:32

      Unbelievable that the Police seem uninterested in a culprit driving around with fake plates. Very saddening.

    • try2bhelpful on 12/12/2018 - 09:37
      +2

      Apparently the cops in Queensland are doing something about this.

      https://mypolice.qld.gov.au/blog/2018/11/01/police-operation…

      The problem is a) how do you detect who and b) how do you apprehend. Any data leads back to the OP, unless the cops run a blitz on the toll roads etc. there has to be a bang for buck payoff with policing and there are higher priorities we want them to be working on.

      • pegaxs on 12/12/2018 - 09:43
        +2

        and there are higher priorities we want them to be working on.

        Yeah, who wants police catching unregistered, uninsured drivers riding around on possibly stolen motorcycles.

        I for one welcome the police spending their time better by booking people for doing 63 in 60 zones, or print out tickets for over staying 5 mins in a parking zone. These are the real criminals that need to be caught.

        • try2bhelpful on 13/12/2018 - 08:01

          I prefer them catching murderers myself.

          The Parking zones are generally parking officers, rather than police. The speed detection is already setup so they will nab people doing much more than the speed limit as well as those a bit over. If people drive 5kph below the speed limit then they don’t risk being caught.

          Infrastructure is currently being built by the Labor government, including a new underground and rail stations. I would rather they spent money, up front, consulting about the best way to do things rather than just digging holes in random places.

          I would think you would have privacy issues with sharing knowledge between private entities and the Government. So how is this done? Do the cops get direct access or does every private parking mob have a watch list of fraudulent number plates so the cops can speed around there and hope someone is still parked. Then go through the whole parking complex looking for them.

          The one that might have a hope is the toll roads, but even then you either need to hope they have a regular pattern or you are lucky they come off at the right exit.

      • [Deactivated] on 12/12/2018 - 10:30

        how do you detect who and apprehend

        Number plates get scanned multiple times in a metropolitan drive. Basic measures such as data sharing with toll and parking groups would alert police to unregistered, stolen, counterfeit, active pursuit,… Lots of potential to apprehend offenders.

        Instead, look at all the "new parking technology" (literally what it says in Victoria) that doesn't help you park safer or better, it is just a sensor for alert ticketing officers to issue fines.

        And a whole lot of consulting fee to build a subway system the suburbs at $50b. Every few years Labor announce this shit, waste millions on consulting fee and it the project fades back to purgatory. They couldn't even get their ticketing system close the original budget and ended up spending $2b+ (still running but now undisclosed). $50b for a massive underground network? They'd spend that on consulting fees before breaking ground

        So yeah, they have the means and method to address the issue but government being government is so bloody inefficient they'd rather spend time building castles in the clouds. /Rant

        • Quantumcat on 12/12/2018 - 17:58
          +4

          Is that Diji?

      • [Deactivated] on 12/12/2018 - 11:25

        ANPR will mean police are able to get onto these things quicker.

        I don't imagine having police be on the lookout for a particular rego is going to yield good results (how many of these do you think there is out any time and the cops are relying on their memory).

        Booze bus etc usually have someone checking every number plate as it goes through.

        • [Deactivated] on 12/12/2018 - 11:42
          +1

          Booze bus etc usually have someone checking every number plate as it goes through.

          Number plate recognition softwares do this. They're very accurate and they can literally scan every passing vehicle.

          • [Deactivated] on 12/12/2018 - 13:56

            @[Deactivated]: That's what ANPR is.

            • [Deactivated] on 12/12/2018 - 13:57

              @[Deactivated]: Sorry, not familiar with the acronym. I only know APR… It's still car related. :)

              • D C on 12/12/2018 - 14:25

                @[Deactivated]:

                ANPR

                Automatic Number Plate Recognition.

                Been around for a long while, getting real common now. That's the reason we don't have rego stickers anymore.

                Read up on what the repo dudes in the USA do with it.

    • Masterpupil on 12/12/2018 - 09:39

      It is frustrating but this tends to increase whenever petrol prices are high. You have no idea how many of these offences are committed every day. There are not enough police available to investigate all of these, often, from what I have seen, they will catch up with them once it is reported as a lot of the police cars now scan number plates automatically.

      • [Deactivated] on 12/12/2018 - 10:18
        +1

        You have no idea how many of these offences are committed every day.

        Exactly one crapload.

        • try2bhelpful on 13/12/2018 - 08:15

          can your crystal ball also give me next weeks tattslotto numbers?

    • nansnake on 12/12/2018 - 12:02

      Kinda true

  • ShannonN on 12/12/2018 - 10:57

    Change plates asap before cops knock on your door claiming a string of drive offs without paying from servos, imagine criminal keeps helmet on fills tank drives off?

    • nansnake on 12/12/2018 - 12:03

      Just changed the plate. Wonder how many fines are coming my way. OMG

      • pegaxs on 12/12/2018 - 12:22
        +2

        15 or so years ago, had my plates stolen/cloned and put onto an identical car. Both white commodore VS. Even after I changed my plates the investigations into petrol theft and speed camera fines was ongoing. Police would turn up randomly and I would have to drag all the paperwork and the photos out. They were pretty good about it though.

        The only thing that ended up saving me was their car had different rims, widows were not tinted, and a distinctive scratch on the rear bumper that mine didn’t have.

        So, you're lucky it is a different bike. Or the headaches get really bad.

  • Cave Fire on 12/12/2018 - 12:43

    Yeah, each case is different. This happened to me after selling a car with the plates on (big mistake). It took about three goes with the police to get the plate flagged. At this point, they are actively looking for the plate. Then you need to go to each different Toll service and get the plate flagged there. I think if the police thought is was one off, they won't flag. But now you have at least one additional toll notice. The legal advice I got was that a stat dec that you weren't driving is enough to cancel any fine. They might tell you otherwise as they are not aware of the law or have been trained differently.

  • [Deactivated] on 13/12/2018 - 19:29

    If the crim using forged/cloned number plate gets caught, take em to small claims and make the pricks pay for costs you had to pay because of them, including cost of new number plate.
    This ice addict in unit block where I used to live did something like changed a "5" into an 8 , used texture to fill in some parts to change numberplate.
    Told me he knew it was stolen, and bragged about getting it cheap (although he didn't own it, so wasn't actually cheap). Anyway, long story short, they did a series of dumb things with it and ended up busted and going to jail.
    Although police are not for civil matters, they might be able to put a note on file to contact you when the culprit is court with numberplate (then make them pay your cost of changing numberplate and any other associated costs incurred). Most crims are dumb asf, and bound to get caught in the end.

    • try2bhelpful on 13/12/2018 - 20:23

      When he told you this did you tell the cops?

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