# license plate visibility



## digger242j (Nov 22, 2001)

I did a quick search and there are only a couple of references to this situation, mostly in terms of, "I know it's a problem but nobody's ever bothered me about it yet".

On the pickup trucks the tailgate type spreaders block the view of the license plate. I once got pulled over by a cop (in an affluent type suburb), because my license plate was *dirty*. I'm sure he'd have been just as happy to pull me over because it had a salt spreader in front of it. (Honestly, I think he pulled me over because it was 9 p.m. and about 45 degrees and I had the window open. I'm thinking he was looking for a DUI bust--some guy, in a "work truck", who'd spent the time from 4 til 8:30 in the bar, but that isn't me. Maybe copandplower might care to comment, but I'm getting off my own topic...)

Anyway, what, if anything have you done to make the license plate legally visible, or is it the consensus to just take your chances? Have you ever had a problem with it?


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## chtucker (Sep 6, 2002)

I think you have a couple of choices...

Move to a place where they let you drive your snowmobile on the street.

Move the license plate temporarily... What a pain. Some sort of cotter pinned assembly

Move the license plate permanantly... What a pain. I have mounted plates on a bumper with self tapping screws, but then you don't have lights for it. They do sell at napa replacement lights. You would have to drill your bumper and tap into your current parking light circuit. What a pain.

I chance it. The would probably give you a fix it warning and you would have 10-30 days to fix it.


Howard


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## jkkalbers (Mar 29, 2002)

I would chance it. Most cops understand it is a temporary situation. Like here in Minnesota you're required to have plates on the front of vehicles. They can't be seen with plows on. We've never had a problem with police.


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## JD PLOWER (May 18, 2001)

It's also a non-issue around these parts, depending on who pulls you over and for what. Our sanding truck goes the entire winter with the rear plate being blocked but the truck also only moves during snowstorms so its usually not an issue.


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## Got Grass? (Feb 18, 2001)

Front plates here in NY required...
Back when I had my Cherokee the plate bracket broke so I kept it on the dash for a couple days. I got pulled over 4 times by 4 diffrent agencys (Amherst, Kenmore, Tonawanda, Cheektowaga) becasue it was not "properly mounted". only Kenmore (figures) gave me a ticket to have it replaced in 3 days.

I have never once been botherd or know of anyone who has becasue of a plow blocking the plate. Officers realize there is no other logical place to mount it & rarly hassle the plow guy as thay know we are experienced drivers in snow. Would be pretty funny getting a ticket for a blocked plate. Pull into a lot unhook the plow and show the cop "it's fixed". Arround here thay give ya 3 days to fix a MINOR equipment volation. Pretty hard for anyone to enforce the "law" then...


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## Chuck Smith (Dec 30, 1999)

Funny you should mention the plate dilema Digger. I was just pondering the same thing the other day. We put a rubber sheet across the back of all our salt trucks, to protect the truck from the salt. Our spreaders have trailer tail lights mounted on each side of the salter engine cover (since the rubber blocks the tail lights), wired with a trailer plug, that we connect to the trailer plug on the truck. One salter doesn't have the extra lights because the truck's lights are visable with the salter in it, but I will be adding lights anyway. Adding a license plate bracket and light would be easy. 

Another reason (in my mind) to relocate the plate is that I just replaced one of ours, which was "Apportioned". We ordered it in June, and it came last week. The plate on the rear of the truck had holes in it from salt and dirt getting trapped behind it. It rotted from the back side out. Had the plate been moved to the salter each year, it would most likely still be intact. I mounted the new plate with spacers to keep it away from the rear hitch plate on the dump truck. I am adding a piece of angle iron to the top edge to stop debris from getting behind the plate.

The plate that was on the front of the same truck looks brand new. Oh, and in NJ you need a front plate too.....

~Chuck


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## Pelican (Nov 16, 2001)

I had mounted my V box spreader similar to what Chuck describes, with a full width piece of conveyor belt draped over the back of my truck. I fixed stop/tail/turn lights to the sander, plugged into the trailer connector. My plate wasn't visible from front or rear when the plow was on too.

I asked a couple cops about it, and yeh, by rights it's supposed to be visible, but they didn't have a problem with it. I ran it 5 years that way and was never stopped. I considered having a sign shop make me a plastic duplicate to mount to the sander, but never got around to it. I know that wouldn't be quite legal either, but I don't think they'd notice it from the car.

I'd check with some of your local cops and get their feelings. Around here we don't get hassled much for anything during storms, I think the cops appreciate us being out there. I've run the Parkway with my truck during storms (normally no commercial vehicles) and not been stopped.


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## John DiMartino (Jan 22, 2000)

Ive been running around for about 7 yrs with a V-box covering the plate on the back,and a plow blocking the front, i have no plans to move it.Ive never been hassled yet.


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## BWhite (Sep 30, 2002)

*backplow*

I thought about plate visibility with my new Backplow I dont think it will be a problem?


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## HD61CUIN (Dec 21, 2001)

Well here in IL you need a front plate too. Can't see that with the blade attached either. The rear one can be seen but who cares, usually there is a ton of snow covering it. I have never been stopped which is good. The plates are registered to the truck, but I never transferred the title or the plates when I bought the truck. I keep the title with me and I have insurance. Here in IL the thing has to pass emissions, which is something that I will be flagged for shortly after I do all the transferring. I am not sure if it will pass. The previous owner removed the smog pump, and added a catalytic converter. It doesnt smoke, just runs a little rough with a vacuum leak that I have yet to find. I hope to finish working on a few things in the spring and make it legal.


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## ADLAWNCUTTERS (May 24, 2001)

as some of you know i am a police officer here in western new york.don't worry about it.if a cop pulls you over for that , most likely it's for a dwi or he is really has nothing else better to do.now if your license or your registration or insurance is not up to date don"t ask for a reason to be pulled over.if you are that worry about it , then use some zip strips to mount it temporally,it shows you made an effort.


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## Got Grass? (Feb 18, 2001)

Adlawncutters, great advice from one of the good guys arrond here.

If anyone dosnt have a valid license, registration or insurance they souldnt be out plowing or driving anywhere for that matter.
Unfortunatly there's always some idiot out there.


I'd love to see a plow guy pulled over in the middle of a snow storm for a DWI... I'm sure you guys have at least heard stories about it. Thoes people need to really spend a few days locked up. Driving is hard enough in snow, plowing (or just driving) when drunk I cant even imagine. The lack of brains some people have...
Listen to the weather reports, pull a couple radar images up & get some sleep before the storm hits. As we know living here we need all the sleep we can possibly get.

Getting pulled over for the officers lack of better to do. Thats a common thing in some parts by the rookies looking for thier first "big bust" or quotas, when their not to busy filling out the report for some UB kid who has never driven in snow before.


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## paul soccodato (Nov 9, 2002)

i used to have an 84 k-20 with a fisher on it, and the plow frame blocked the front license plate. well i got a ticket for no front plate, went to court with pictures, paperwork saying the plow was dealer installed. anyway i lost the case and still had to pay the ticket.


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## jbutch83 (Sep 30, 2002)

I too, am a full time Police Officer, and I don't know of anyone where I am from being stopped because the license plate was not visible due to a plow of salter. Most of the guys that I work with are pretty reasonable, and will take that into account if we see something like that on the road. As far as quotas, I know that we don't have any, and I do not know of any departments in my area that do. I think that most people's misconception is that when we write a ticket, we get that money. I can tell you that we don't see any money from a ticket, it all goes to the state. Our department does not benefit from writing more tickets, and neither do the officers. At how expensive tickets have gotten in my area, I can't justify writing everyone I stop a $113 ticket. Warnings and being nice to people go a long way in this career, and if you have a bad experience with an officer, and you felt the officer was out of line, I urge you to file a complaint. 


John


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## Pelican (Nov 16, 2001)

*Thanks, Guys!*

Since we've heard from a number of P/Os, I wanted to say "Thanks!" for your service to community. With all the risk you expose yourself to, and the lack of support you receive, both from the public, and the bureaucracy, it's a wonder anyone chooses that career.

I've got my own complaints (it seems every car on the road at 3 & 4 am is a dewey suspect), but I know overall the majority are good cops, and my hat's off to you.


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## digger242j (Nov 22, 2001)

The thing that prompted me to ask the question was the possibility that my wife would be driving that particular truck for a few days. (See my posts in the "Opening Day" thread in the Off Topic and General Discussion forum.) The truck would have been sitting idle anyway. I took the plow off and was about to leave the salter on until I noticed that it does obscure the license plate. She would have been driving when there wasn't any snow around. That might have made it a little harder to justify (and if she'd gotten pulled over it would have been, uhh...let's just say it wouldn't have been good). I took the salter off and then we ended up with a rental car anyway.

I won't argue with the fact that most law enforcement personnel are pretty reasonable. I believe that most of what they do is in the genuine interest of public saftey, and I will say that I personally have never had an issue with my treatment by the police. And we all know that they put more on the line every time they get dressed for work than most of us ever do. I have heard, however, from friends who are or have been police officers, that sometimes the Chief wants to see tickets written, and just like the rest of us the guys in the patrol cars have to follow orders. 

I appreciate the replies, particularly those from ADLAWNCUTTERS and jbutch83. They represent the pros on the law enforcement side of this particular question. That's the great thing about PlowSite--if a question pops into your head you can generally get a wider and deeper cross-section of opinions, and get it faster, just by posting it here than you could get through some other means.


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## Pelican (Nov 16, 2001)

Hey Digger, the streets of LaGrangeville are one 6 pointer safer!


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## BWhite (Sep 30, 2002)

*thanks*

Hey Pelican your post of two ago also sounds like you were writing about teachers


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## Pelican (Nov 16, 2001)

> sounds like you were writing about teachers


The only comment I can make to that is I can't make the comparison.


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## Rooster (Dec 13, 1999)

Digger,

I just bought my first spreader (seems more ice here than snow the last few years) and had the same concerns that you do.

I asked a few local police officers that are friends of mine about the legal issue of the plate visability. All but one told me that it was not a big issue with them, because they know what a spreader is used for and they have known me for years ( I guess personal relationships do have some merit), the other Officer I asked kind of got embarrased in a why when I asked him, because I plow the lot where his wife owns a business, so naturally he told me he would not ticket me or for that matter someone else if a spreader partially blocked the plate.

I was cautioned that some new officers just out on patrol on their own might make an issue of the visibility of the plate, and was told to explain to them why etc, and ask them for a suggestion where to mount the tag on a temp. basis.

Rick


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## Ohiosnow (Sep 20, 2001)

*If your state gives you 2 plates*

I just mount my front plate on the salter even though we are to have a front plate. With the plow on front you can't see it anyway, & if your going to get pulled over they are going to be coming from behind anyway, now they can see you are trying to be a good citizen with 2 plates. :waving: 1 in full view & 1 partly hidden.


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## digger242j (Nov 22, 2001)

PA only gives one plate. 

I'm just not going to worry about it in a storm, but I think I'll go to the trouble of taking the spreader off if the truck's going to be driven for any distance between storms.


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## RJC (Jun 16, 2001)

I am a retired trooper and personally never thought of stopping a person for not having their plate visable while plowing. (front or rear) Though technically it is a violation, it is considered a chicken crap ticket by our troops. 
Our state requires only a rear tag, though our boardering state doesn't. I think a good defense in regard to a charge for the plow blocking the front plate would be to bring to light that there are a whole lot of state owned trucks running around with plows blocking their front plates, at least they are in Maryland.


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## Pelican (Nov 16, 2001)

RJC, no offense, but there's a whole lot of Troopers in my state who speed, how far do ya think that line would go? 

Please understand this is a point made in jest...


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## 66Construction (Jan 26, 2001)

I was just stoped and ticketed the other day and have a v-box in the truck which completely blocks the plate. The trooper had no problem walking to the front to check the plate, and didn't even mention it. When the plow is on both plates are blocked just like evryone else.

I have seen a truck around which has the front plate mounted to the lift frame of a fisher. Looks kinda funny, and it's the only one I've seen like that.

As for the ticket, the Trooper has to do his job and I guess my lawyer needs something to do too. (he has a special way with speeding tickets)
Casey


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## Got Grass? (Feb 18, 2001)

Ok, so ya got a ticket... I'm the first of many others wondering WHY?


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## 66Construction (Jan 26, 2001)

Got Grass
It says right there in parenthesis....45 in a 30 to be exact.
 yeah yeah I know "please deposit you fine on your way out of the court room". I know just about everyone's been there one time or another. I'll take a fine over points any day.
Casey


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## SIPLOWGUY (Mar 21, 2002)

I had my plate blocked. I moved it before I got a ticket. I'm a Civilian MOS. The Cops are OK...The Traffic agents....well I fix their Tow Trucks so be nice!


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## Got Grass? (Feb 18, 2001)

Doh, need to improve my reading skills.... I've had more than my share of tickets... Last one was for "Passing on the right" (who hasnt?) big deal I passed a lady in the left lane going 30 in a 45 distracted by her cell phone. Dismissed.

Anyways that sucks. At least ya didnt get any points, they send ya to that joke called driving school?


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## Waterchikn (Dec 19, 2000)

As soon as I put my spreader on, I noticed it covered the plate, I drove up to the local police department and asked the desk sgt. to look at my truck and see it there is anything wrong, he said "No, I don't think so". Then I pointed out the fact that the plate was covered. He said I could take the plate off and stick it in the rear window, but thats not really legal either, so he recommended just leaving it how it is and I shouldn't have a problem. So far, So good.


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## KLMlawn (Apr 18, 2001)

I have a 2'x3' mud flap mounted under my V-box, haven't had any inquiries so far, but then you always have that one individual who feels his authority is greater than the overall good of your intentions who will give you a hassle.


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