I fell victim to number plate fraud in France - fines kept arriving

Number plate cloning, where someone reproduces the plates of another vehicle to evade fines, often from automatic speed cameras, is on the rise.

The practice has increased by 46% in six years, with some 23,000 numbers stolen each year, according to France’s interior ministry.

This can result in the owner of the original plates being fined for offences they did not commit, and forced to go through a lengthy appeals process to prove innocence.

A victim’s experience

One victim, photographer Danny Lennox Bronson, from Oregon, US, has owned a house in Yzeures-sur-Creuse (Indre-et-Loire) since 2017. In 2024, he was fined twice.

On both dates, he was abroad visiting family at the time, so he knew he was not guilty of the offence.

He paid the first fine, as he had missed the one-month deadline to appeal by being out of the country.

However, he successfully appealed against the second fine, showing his airline tickets as proof.

In early January, he received yet another notice.

“I was in an association meeting all day.

“I am contesting that one and have testimony from the secretary of the association confirming my presence (with my car) at that meeting.”

Each fine requires Mr Bronson to submit supporting evidence proving he could not have been responsible.

“I have spent hours on each one of these tickets, documenting my innocence and sending information by registered post with proof of delivery. It’s exhausting!

“I am now trying to get permission from my prefecture for a new carte grise [vehicle registration document].”

How to contest fines and protect yourself

Last year, he received more fines. Again, the offences had allegedly been committed while he was abroad.

“I received two more tickets just like before. I am contesting them because my car was safely parked in a private garage during that time,” he told The Connexion.

Reforms introduced in 2025 include much stricter access to the computerised system for issuing number plates to help combat fraud.

It will now be granted only to people working for firms that have been in the motor trade for at least a year and who do not have a criminal record.

However, the motorist association 40 millions d’automobilistes has criticised the lack of adequate action.

In November, it called for “concrete and immediate measures from the government” to combat it.

The group said: “Victimised motorists find themselves caught in a complex and time-consuming process of contesting fines, requiring cumbersome administrative procedures: filing a complaint, changing the vehicle registration and replacing the plates.”

If it happens to you, it is important to act quickly. Tickets will state how long you have to appeal against the fine – usually one month.

You can appeal online here.

You might have to send evidence that you were not driving your car at the time specified in the notice, such as a speed camera photo. You can request the latter here.

If you have been a victim of number plate theft, you should also file a police report.

You are advised to request a new carte grise with a new registration number.