Traffic Enforcement/Policing

[innsertnamehere]

I've seen statements like that before. I would ask him to comment on the actual legislation in HTA Section 13:

(2) Every number plate shall be kept free from dirt and obstruction and shall be affixed so that the entire number plate, including the numbers, is plainly visible at all times, and the view of the number plate shall not be obscured or obstructed by spare tires, bumper bars, any part of the vehicle, any attachments to the vehicle or the load carried. 1994, c. 27, s. 138 (7).​

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Obstruction prohibited​

(3) The number plates shall not be obstructed by any device that prevents the entire number plates including the numbers from being accurately photographed using an automated speed enforcement system. 2017, c. 9, s. 3.​

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Same​

(3.0.1) The number plates shall not be obstructed by any device that prevents the entire number plates including the numbers from being accurately photographed using a red light camera system. 1998, c. 38, s. 2 (1).​

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Same​

(3.1) The number plates shall not be obstructed by any device or material that prevents the entire number plates including the numbers from being identified by an electronic toll system. 1996, c. 1, Sched. E, s. 2 (1).​

As for prohibited sale of covers, etc., it's not something done lightly in a free market economy, is certainly beyond the scope of the HTA, and may well be beyond the scope of provincial legislation. Besides, one doesn't have to spend a lot of time on sites like Amazon to learn that the online sale of what are otherwise illegal products is rampant.

The critical part is bolded below:

Every number plate shall be kept free from dirt and obstruction and shall be affixed so that the entire number plate, including the numbers, is plainly visible at all times,

(3) The number plates shall not be obstructed by any device that prevents the entire number plates including the numbers from being accurately photographed using an automated speed enforcement system. 2017, c. 9, s. 3.



It's not that only the numbers can't be obstructed, the entire license plate must be visible. Which means that any plate cover, even those small frames that literally every dealership in the province shoves on their sold cars, are illegal.

I used to have a small chrome plate cover which wrapped around the plate on my car, I removed it about a year ago once I learned this. I'm not giving the cops any reason to pull me over - a small chrome plate, while unlikely to get me a ticket, automatically gives cops reasonable cause to pull me over and conduct an investigation. No thanks. My plates are mounted directly to the car now with no cover or border whatsoever.

 

[W. K. Lis]

Which is why we have front license plates on vehicles.

From link.

What's Driving You Crazy: Is it legal to have a bike rack on a car covering up the rear license plate? ​

Dave from Berthoud writes, “What’s driving you crazy? I have a photo on my phone of a bike rack on a car covering up the rear license plate - with no bikes in it. Is that even legal?”

No Dave, it is not legal. Nor is it legal if there were bikes on the rack. Some people online speculate that drivers would do this to bypass the license plate readers on a toll road or avoid being caught by photo radar or the red light cameras. I have doubts about that being a widespread reason for the empty bike rack.

Colorado Revised Statute 42-3-202 clearly states: “A person shall not operate a motor vehicle with an affixed device or a substance that causes all or a portion of a license plate to be unreadable by a system used to automatically identify a motor vehicle.”

A bike rack, with bikes or not, qualifies as an affixed device. When I talked to a couple of officers about this, one an avid cyclist, they told me there is the intent of the law and officer discretion. The law is written so officers or automatic plate readers, like the ones on a toll road, can see and read the plate easily. They aren’t likely to pull you over unless they believe there is real intent to break the law. The best way to do that is to remove the bike rack from the vehicle when there are no bikes on it. When there are bikes on the rack, the officers I spoke to told me they would feel there is reasonable suspicion that driver is not intending to break the law.

According to bicycleuniverse.com, “Every state has some sort of laws around safely transporting bikes with your vehicles. Some of them are vaguer about the whole thing than others, but it’s safe to say that the following should be kept in mind: Most states require that license plates and taillights be visible to other drivers while on the road. This means that if you’re using a rear mount, you may need an auxiliary plate.”

The website notes that the law in Utah allows for plates to be obscured by a trailer hitch, a wheelchair lift, a trailer, a bike rack, or any other cargo carrying device, as long as the installation instructions were done properly. They cite Michigan as well saying the law was amended there to allow bike racks to block license plates.

Interestingly, in Australia, Yakima makes a mini accessory license plate that is basically a mini license plate with your plate number that you Velcro strap to the bike when it is blocking your actual license plate. I can’t say that it is legal by any means, but it isn’t a bad idea ether.

 

[lenaitch]

The critical part is bolded below:

Every number plate shall be kept free from dirt and obstruction and shall be affixed so that the entire number plate, including the numbers, is plainly visible at all times,

(3) The number plates shall not be obstructed by any device that prevents the entire number plates including the numbers from being accurately photographed using an automated speed enforcement system. 2017, c. 9, s. 3.



It's not that only the numbers can't be obstructed, the entire license plate must be visible. Which means that any plate cover, even those small frames that literally every dealership in the province shoves on their sold cars, are illegal.

I used to have a small chrome plate cover which wrapped around the plate on my car, I removed it about a year ago once I learned this. I'm not giving the cops any reason to pull me over - a small chrome plate, while unlikely to get me a ticket, automatically gives cops reasonable cause to pull me over and conduct an investigation. No thanks. My plates are mounted directly to the car now with no cover or border whatsoever.

I don't know how a particular court would look upon that, but I doubt they would be overly exercised if a narrow frame only covered the border of the metal plate itself. The key elements are the letters/number and jurisdiction (and formerly - current validation). Some dealer-provided frames were covering some of those other elements.

Nice proactive thought, but the SCOC has ruled, several times, that no 'probable cause' is needed. Driving is a regulated activity and police are empowered to check for a valid licence, insurance, operator sobriety and vehicle fitness.

Which is why we have front license plates on vehicles.

From link.

What's Driving You Crazy: Is it legal to have a bike rack on a car covering up the rear license plate?​

And the way this government is going looking for cost savings, I'm not too sure how long that will last. I've been retired 19 years and there was talk of eliminating 'evidence of validation' back when I was still working. The law enforcement argument back then was mobile access to registration information was limited, and automatic licence plate readers were still unproven, clunky and expensive. All of that has been overcome. I'm convinced the MTO was working towards removing the need for valtags for several years, then the Ford government seized it and botched the announcement as an election goody. Now both the police and MTO and trying to play catch-up reminding people that they still have renew their registration.

No doubt the issue of bike racks and other such things are a problem in single-plate jurisdictions.