However in some states in the US only on official rear plate is required. The number plates are required to be lit with sufficient light to be identified from a certain distance at night. Different states or countries have their own rules as to who owns them, and where they need to attached, etc. The covering of number plates or license plates is forbidden in most countries, with the US being more stringent in the colors allowed for the license plate protectors. They must be clear, not tinted, as the tinted covers may confuse some of the electronic monitoring equipment that is used by the law enforcement agencies.

Number plates of license plates have been around for almost as long as the motor car. The first ones appeared at the turn of the 19th century to the 20th century. At first the manufacture of the plates was the responsibility of the motor vehicle owner. The government agency simply gave a number to the owner. They made them from porcelain baked in iron. They were brittle and totally of an inappropriate material for a registration plate. The makers of plates tried cardboard, leather, plastic, copper and other products The plate’s shapes and sizes varied from one place to another until in 1957 reason prevailed.

Three basis sizes were agreed with across the world:
• Western Hemisphere countries (US) 150mm x 300mm
• European countries 110mm x 520mm
• Australia and the Pacific Rim 130mm x 370mm
Almost all combinations of number and letters has been tried and tested by different countries with between five and ten characters being the most prevalent.

Steel is the most common material that is used across the world, with colors varying greatly, but the basic manufacturing method is common. Some plates have raised letters and others are flat. The raised character plates are manufactured in the following way. The characters are pressed into the steel plate of the right size, the entire plate is painted and the very top of the raised characters are then painted. The flat plates are made in a similar way, other then there is no pressing process at the start. Symbols and graphics are creeping into the designs to create more interest.

In some countries the plate manufacturing plants are located inside prisons whereas there is a trend to outsource the production of number plates of license plates by the authorities.

In the UK the first number plate produced was A1.

Collectors of number plates can be found all over the world. It will be interesting as the electronic age moves further along, what methods will be used by officials to identify vehicles in the future.