Texas DPS response to front license plate law.

I would not expect anything different than to "tow the line."

I never had any issue in the Ferrari in East Texas, or when I drove it to Dallas or Houston. I routinely got pulled over in my other cars that did not have a front plate, regardless of location. I now have a plate on the front of all my cars (sold the Ferrari.)

I would suspect that unless a department or individual wants to waste time or meet a quota you won't have anything to worry about. I still see plenty of cars without the front tag. It is just another tool that the long arm of the law can use to justify a closer look (for whatever reason.)

 

Are they insuring or ensuring that everyone has a front plate?

 

Now that's funny!!! People on this board understand the difference but would hate to consider how many average citizens fail to grasp word definition disparity.


Bill

 

Happens here at work all the time...

 

I almost called to light the grammar irregularities, but then I remembered the author could put me in the hoosegow if he felt like it. Also, nobody's perfect. Not even media and communications officers.

 

I got a ticket yesterday for not having a front plate, I guess El Paso is more New Mexico than Texas lol. Cops here are real haters!

 

Sorry to hear. What are you going to do, pay it and leave the plate off or put it on?

 

I recently moved to the Austin area. And, I see so many other serious moving violations going unenforced. For example, following too closely and speeding in unsafe vehicles...


It would seem that law enforcement would focus more on serious violations that may result in serious bodily injury. I can see law enforcement using the non front license plate law to pull over those individuals that may look suspicious of other serious crimes. But, to pull over and ticket someone for no other reason, is just crazy. Let's use our resources to make the highways safer for all of us.

I know for a fact that the toll roads have no problem determining who to send the toll bill to with only one plate displayed in the rear. So this argument is BS.

That's my 2 cents on the issue

 

I will leave it alone, but I did put the front plate on my dd (cayenne).

I will call my attorney and see if he can get it dismissed for 50 bucks.

 

As a police officer I understand your concerns but if there is not a police officer around who actually witnesses 'unsafe driving' how are they/we supposed to enforce this? As mentioned numerous times here not having a front license plate is 'unlawful operation of a motor vehicle' and can be subject to receiving either a citation or a warning. Both will be entered into the DPS database and if an offender constantly receives citations or warnings they are considered habitual offenders with no regard of the law.

I totally respect the Fcar communities concern but it is a "two way street". Properly displaying a front license plate does not mean putting it on your dashboard either. Fines can easily exceed the cost of a front bumper when insurance premiums are taken into account. I always have a peaceful state of mind while driving my POV because I have both plates fully displayed and ALWAYS use my blinker even if no one is around for miles, why you may ask, because it is the law.

 

I don't think a non moving violation like this will affect insurance. But maybe I am wrong.

 

A "traffic ticket" cannot be issued to a non-moving vehicle as one would have to be utilizing "public highways". An expired registration/emissions tag could be subject to a ticket yet that is not something a police officer handles unless there are extenuating circumstances.

I ramble but my point is that having a front license plate takes nothing away from your awesome cars and hopefully I can help shed some light.

 

Yesterday leaving CODA after the F1 race, going North bound on the toll road with a group of cars and a semi infront at sub 80mph speed limit, I passed a trooper on the shoulder with lights on. I was on the left lane. After passing he turned his lights off and entered the highway. I was stopped with my F430 Spider about a half mile up the road. He approached from the passanger side and informed me that I was in violation of a state law he quoted. I asked what that meant in English and he stated "you have no front plate displayed". He further stated the legislator recently approved a $200 fine and that they are putting a priority on enforcement. After checking my insurance and drivers' licence he went back to his car to give me a warning ticket.

By the way, that expensive new tollway with the 80mph speed limit is dificult to drive at that speed or higher due to many left lane huggers insisting on drive 65 or 70 even when traffic is only moderate, although it saved alot of time getting in and out of CODA, excluding the traffic stop as I was staying at a hotel in Round Rock.

 

I got pulled over yesterday in Acton Texas on the way back from Granbury. The DPS officer approached me ( I was in the California) and he informed me the reason he pulled me over was for no front license plate. He walked to the front and said " Honestly, I am not sure how you are supposed to mount one not this car."
We shot the bull for a second and laughed and he said he was just going to write me a warning.
If I had been an a$$hat, he definitely would have written me a ticket but he was reasonable and actually admitted he wanted to look in the car ( I had the top down).

Funny thing, on the part of the ticket below the make ( Ferrari) he put "Pick Up"

 

As someone who has lived here in Round Rock (North adjacent to Austin) for 11 years, this is what I was attempting to convey in other threads on this topic. The cops (especially moto cops) and state troopers around this area have started getting really dickish about this lately.

I ran my S4 for over a decade (2 years of it in Dallas), getting warned maybe twice for no front plate (like FCars, there is also no clear/easy mount for it other than drilling the bumper).

But in the last couple of years they started pulling me over constantly (twice in one week even) and when they started looking up the number of warnings I had been issued, the warnings started becoming tickets. I was able to get them dismissed for $10 by temp-mounting a plate and then removing it after, but the record of the warnings/citations gave them more ammo each time.

I put a plate on my 355 immediately upon purchase (tow eye bracket). I hate it, but it beats giving them an easy reason to harass. I took 130 to the track, saw plenty of cops (even saw one trooper who had snagged 4 vettes simultaneously) with no issue. Just easier to give in on this one if you live in this area.

 

I guess some folks don't want to take chances. Saw this Saturday @ the USGP when walking back to my car.
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Not a bad idea after a few beverages...

 

According to what I've read about RRPD and Austin-area DPS handling the law, I bet they stopped a whole lot of exotics this weekend...

 

I was recently at my local police station / city hall to vote and had a long conversation with one my cities finest on this issue.

The cities officers had discussed it and decided to do the following:
He said that they wouldn't pull over a car for no front plate unless they needed to use it for probable cause, like if the car looked suspicious or out of place.

He did say he wouldnt issue a ticket for no front plate unless the driver had an attitude, in that case they would get a ticket.

We even walked over to my car and discussed how the car wasn't designed to have a front plate.

This is one cities opinion, I am sure every police force treats it in their own way.

 

Was driving from Dallas to Denver last month on 287 in Vernon and saw an oncoming unmarked cruiser swing around from the other side of the highway. Didn't think in a million years he was after me, but guess what? Lights come on and he's pulling me over. Reason? No front plate. I had literally just received my plate two days prior and didn't have a front bracket. Was cordial and explained that I just purchased the car and that the plates were two days old. I did get off with a warning.

Mostly it's an excuse to stop and question the driver to see if there is anything else going on (illegal).

 

I was stopped on my way to a dove hunt near Vernon last year for the exact same reason.

They just (typically) want a reason to pull vehicles they either suspect or don't recognize as local.

 

Yup. Was questioned as to our trip plans.

 

For the DFW owners who don't have a front plate on their car, I would advise you to stay clear of Joshua. The cops here will pull you over for just about anything, and they will hand out citations for anything they can find. I've seen several cars (including a GT-R) without a front plate pulled over.