The number plates that show your initials twice over
By Steven Jackson OBE, Founder, New Reg Limited
Some buyers pick a current-style plate that carries both their two-letter and three-letter initials at once, like SJ11 STJ. Official data shows how many go this far.
There is a neat trick to the most personal number plates, and a small, deliberate group of buyers use it: they put their initials on the plate twice.
What doubling up means. A current-style plate reads as two letters, two numbers, then three letters, such as SJ11 STJ. The two-letter block at the front and the three-letter group at the end can both spell the same person's initials. When the front block matches the first and last letter of the trio, the plate carries your two-letter initials (SJ) and your full three-letter initials (STJ) at the same time. For a Steven Terence Jackson, SJ11 STJ says who you are twice over. It almost always means one person making a point of it, not two people sharing.
How often it happens. Over the last 30 days, our figures from official DVLA new-reg data and newreg.co.uk show 593 current-style plates sold where the area block equals the first and last letter of the three letters. The most-bought pairings in that group were MD and MOD (as in MD61 MOD), LX and LEX, EJ and ERJ, JP and JLP, and DO and DOO, each carrying a buyer's two-letter and three-letter initials at once. That is a smaller, more deliberate group than the many buyers who simply share a final initial with a partner, which we cover in our guide to the plates couples buy to share.
Why people do it. It is the most complete way to make a plate yours. Whether you go by two initials or three, the plate still reads as you, and anyone glancing at it gets the message twice. Because the front block and the letters have to line up, the exact combination is scarcer than an ordinary initials plate, which only adds to the appeal.
How to find yours. Search your three-letter initials first, then check whether the two-letter block made of your first and last initial is available with a low number. A plate like SJ11 STJ is far more sought-after than AB11 STJ, because the former carries both your initials and the latter carries them once.
These figures come from official DVLA new-reg data and newreg.co.uk and cover the last 30 days. You can search for your own initials at newreg.co.uk. This is general information, not advice.
Verified against an official source
Based on official DVLA new-reg data and newreg.co.uk, last 30 days.
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