The Joy of Number Plates

In 1990, when the H-prefix DVLA registrations went on sale, I thought that a good number for me would be H3 UMF (Humf-Three, as in Humfrey!). Purely out of interest, I checked to see if the number was available and it was. The problem was that, at the time, I would have needed a brand new car to put it on.

Ten years later I checked again and, luckily enough, the number was still available. So I purchased it, as by now I had a car young enough to put the plate on. We went on a family holiday to Blackpool in 2004 in the Range Rover H3 UMF and, on the way back to the caravan park, we were waiting at traffic lights when I noticed that the BMW in the lane next to me had the number H2 UMF. “Wow” I thought, “That’s some coincidence.” I tried waving to the driver of the BMW but he was too busy staring at the traffic lights. I fumbled in my coat for my camera phone but was too late and just got a very fuzzy picture of the BMW as it sped off to the right after the lights had changed.

Last year we purchased a BMW 525 off eBay, which came with a good number plate - M525 NKN. My wife, Joy, suggested getting cherished number plates for the BMW to go alongside H3 UMF. I said “no” because M525 NKN was already a good number for a BMW 525. A couple of months later, whilst browsing on eBay, I came across E525 JOY. The chap was about to scrap a Fiat Uno, which had sported this number since new, and thought he would sell the number first. How I came across the number, I really don’t know, as I wasn’t searching for registrations and certainly not for Fiat Unos!

I guess it must have been fate - the number certainly suits the car, especially as Joy’s maiden name is Evans and, as a lot of people in town still know her as Evans, the ‘E’ is good too!

I have sold a couple of numbers in the past through Regtransfers.co.uk (SAM 186H and M39 JAD) and was very pleased with the friendly and efficient service. The magazine is a great read for number plate enthusiasts. Keep up the good work!

Joy and Mark Humfrey

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