New York Is Collecting Data On License Plates During Inspections

Vehicle inspectors in New York will be reporting your license plate to the state. If your license plate is in disrepair, prepare to be snitched on to the New York Department of Motor Vehicles. When you get your next inspection, you'll be told about your license plate's condition, according to Fox 5. The DMV is increasing its scrutiny of the conditions of license plates. Many drivers have been evading tolls by using plastic covers or using other tactics to avoid paying tolls or being detected by speed or red light cameras.

Getty Images

More: How Long Can You Legally Drive With Expired Tags In New York?

While the condition of your license plate won't affect the passing or failing status of your inspection, the information will be provided to the DMV. Officials will collect data to determine how many peeling, damaged, or defaced plates are on vehicles in New York.

New York Drivers Cheat City Out Of $100 Million In Tolls

New York City says that sneaky drivers are using illegal tactics to avoid paying tolls. They have cost the city $100 million in toll revenue, according to a recent audit. New York City Comptroller Brad Lander conducted an audit of the NYC Department of Transportation’s speed camera program. The audit found that drivers are using illegal tactics, such as obscured, temporary, or ghost license plates to avoid paying tolls and fines. Lander says that the drivers have cost the city more than $100 million.

Speed cameras reduce speeding, prevent crashes, and save lives. Unfortunately, a small but rapidly growing number of drivers are illegally obscuring their license plates in order to speed without getting caught. These scofflaws are putting their neighbors’ lives and safety at risk – and cheating the City out of $100 million a year.

According to the audit, the speed camera system in the city rejected 1,076,182 or 22 percent of all captured incidents due to ghost plates (748,468; 15.3 percent) or covered plates (327,714; 6.7 percent) between January and June 2023.

Getty Images