What is this new trend of hiding your license plates and why you shouldn’t do it?

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The scene is repeated in the streets of Paris, Toulouse, Bordeaux and Marseille. Parked cars now display an unexpected accessory: cardboard, tea towels, or even surgical masks covering their license plates.

This trend, which may raise a smile, hides a more complex reality: the desire to escape the LAPI (Automated License Plate Recognition) system deployed by municipalities to control paid parking.

A trick that is spreading on social networks

The phenomenon has taken on new dimensions since a Parisian lawyer specializing in defending motorists published a viral video on TikTok. Viewed more than 2.8 million times, this one presents this technique as an effective countermeasure against “PV sulphators”. The principle is simple:by hiding the license plate, the inspection vehicle equipped with the LAPI system is prevented from scanning the registration and therefore checking whether the parking has been paid for.

This practice particularly affects urban areas where parking has become a real financial headache for residents. Parisian construction site workers, in particular, regularly use this trick to avoid fines during their work. Other creative variations have also appeared: parking at an angle against facades, using rain tarpaulins for two-wheelers, or strategic placement next to other vehicles.

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A vague legal framework that raises questions

The defenders of this practice rely on what they consider to be a legal vacuum. Article R317-8 of the Highway Code stipulates that the plates must be “ affixed in a visible place ” and maintained in a condition that allows the inscriptions to be read. But this text, written well before the advent of automated checks, leaves room for different interpretations.

The question of liability also poses a problem. How to prove who hid the plate ? A malicious neighbor could theoretically hide the plates of an entire neighborhood. This legal grey area fuels debates between motorists and authorities, each defending their own interpretation of the texts.

Risks that can exceed the hoped-for savings

Municipalities are not standing idly by in the face of these practices. In Toulouse, for example, public highway surveillance officers (ASVP) have adapted their response. When they spot a vehicle with hidden plates, they switch to manual mode and can impose a double penalty: 35 euros for failure to pay for parking, to which can be added 135 euros for an illegible plate.

The case law also leans towards the authorities. A 2015 ruling by the Court of Cassation specifies that the offence concerning the legibility of plates “ concerns the equipment of the vehicle and not its driving ” and can therefore be found even on a stationary vehicle. This decision provides a solid legal basis for the fines.

It is also important to note that while the debate currently focuses on parking, tampering with registration plates on the road (greasing, changing the characters) is a much more serious offence that can lead to criminal prosecution.

• Hiding registration plates can result in a double fine of up to 170 euros
• This increasingly common practice is of course illegal
• While the savings made on parking are substantial, beware of the legal risks involved

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