Overview
- The DVLA's specialist panel carried out its routine August review and removed 523 '76' registration combinations, a list that was published by multiple news outlets.
- The agency says the digits 7 and 6 can look like letters, which increases the number of letter‑like permutations and made the '76' series harder to screen.
- Examples reported as blocked include crude or violent references such as AS76 FKU, GE76 GUN and US76 WAR, showing the panel targeted sexual, violent and conflict-related combinations.
- Drivers face enforcement if they display banned or non‑compliant plates, including confiscation, MOT failure that can affect insurance, and fines of up to £1,000, the DVLA warned.
- The '76' plates are scheduled to begin on September 1, 2026, and the suppressed list represents a tiny share of all possible registrations while media and third‑party compilers used DVLA and Carwow data to publish the combinations.