A Novelty License Plate Caused This Californian To Get 15 Traffic Tickets - Here's Why

You know those novelty license plates that say "2FAST4U" and whatnot? Normally, they're relatively harmless fun, offering a cheap and easy way to personalize your car if you live in a state that doesn't require a front license plate. Unfortunately for one poor soul, everything went terribly wrong. Her actual vanity license plate, reading "LUVSICK," was identical to a novelty plate with the same text. What's worse, the novelty plate closely resembled the California registration of the (legal) vanity plate: It had a white background, red text, and blue numbers, and even included fake "inspection stickers" on either side. 

At a glance, this just looks like a funny coincidence. However, what's less humorous is that the owner had received 15 different traffic violations from across the United States since May. All of these involved misdemeanors in which the offender had a "LUVSICK" novelty plate on their car. Essentially, she received all the tickets meant for other people because of her license plate.

What's sad is that this isn't even the first time a mix-up like this occurred. Back in 2024, a New York retiree received over $16,000 worth of fines tied to plates she surrendered four years prior, as reported by News 12. That said, having a license plate that closely resembles a novelty plate is certainly a new reason to receive out-of-state traffic tickets.

Here's the problem: with the ever-increasing automation of various civil jobs, including traffic management, you now have a variety of cameras in place. Normally, these help speed things along, including toll cameras that let you drive on through and pay later, as well as red light cameras, which detect a variety of different things depending on the sensor type. These include whether there's a car sitting at a traffic light and whether cars run said light.

The unlucky owner of the vanity plate received 15 different tickets from cameras just like these, including toll road violations and failing to stop at an intersection, from all over the country. What likely happened is that the camera in question snapped a picture of the offense, read off the license plate as a California plate with the text "LUVSICK," and assigned the ticket to that plate number. A police officer pulling over someone with that plate wouldn't make the mistake of believing it to be genuine, especially if they pulled over a Chevy Camaro but saw that the plate was registered to a Dodge Magnum. It'd be an immediate red flag a cop would see when running someone's plates.

What's more, the Magnum's owner has apparently had the car (and the plate adorning it) for about 20 years, according to an interview with CBS News. One less point in favor of increased automation of traffic control, then.

Vanity plates have been a thing practically since the license plate was invented, but there are numerous ways to get in trouble with them — one of which is a realistic novelty plate or an old plate that someone failed to surrender. While there are certain prohibited personalized plates, vanity plates themselves aren't illegal. However, something like this plate skirts a fine line, considering it closely resembles a real-world plate. Thankfully, this particular plate isn't for sale anymore, though the clothing retailer that originally offered it, Zumiez, still sells other models, supposedly for use as wall-hangers only.

Because these plates aren't actually legal to drive with, the drivers using these plates realistically should be getting multiple fines for their troubles, or maybe even more severe punishments. For example, in New York City, even having unauthorized paper license plates can get your car impounded, so be sure to check with state and municipal laws.

That said, if you happen to have some old license plates lying around, don't throw them out. They might actually be worth their weight in gold, and they remain some of the most collectible common pieces of automotive memorabilia out there.