Call it a license to scam.
Law-evading drivers can easily buy devices that go on legitimate license plates to cover or obscure the identifying characters online via Instagram, TikTok or Amazon.
The kits, which sell for around $60 to $70 each, allow drivers to get away with speeding, evading tolls and, as of this week, skirting congestion zone fees in the Big Apple.
Videos promoting the so-called “ghost plates” show people applying the sneaky stickers, films and coverings to license plates for New York, California and other states.
One merchant of menace touts its “antiradar stickers” and “Nanofilm Ecoslick” products – which leave the characters of license plates visible to the naked eye but make them invisible to cameras – as being “absolutely legal” and promises, “Enjoy your fast drives without any fines.”
A phone number for the company, which The Post is choosing not to name, was answered by an AI generated voice, who claimed their products are “legal in most states” as they do not obscure the plate to the naked eye.
That’s not strictly true.
According to traffic-ticket attorney Martin Kron, “If the intent is to defraud, it’s illegal,” for a driver to apply these products.
New York State amended its rules on ghost plates in September last year, making it “illegal to sell or distribute those materials and covers, or any material designed to look like a lawful license plate but has not been legally issued by the NY DMV.”
Fines were increased from $100 to $500 and offenders caught three times in five years will have their vehicle registration suspended.
That same month Mayor Eric Adams launched a ‘Ghost Car Task Force’ in the city.
However New York City officials don’t appear to be in sync with the state.
On Tuesday, two days after the congestion charge went into place, the NYC Department of Transport trumpeted a proposed new law against obscuring license plates in the city.
The proposed amendment states: “Parking with an obstructed plate can result in a $50 fine” and seeks to ban “obscured, concealed or distorted license plates.”
The DOT told The Post they were unable to clarify why the city is seemingly not in line with state laws.
Regardless, the NYPD is actively enforcing against fake plates. Statistics seen by The Post show they seized 36,000 ‘ghost cars’ in 2024 and another 294 already this year.
Following the implementation of the congestion charge, police have issued hundreds of summonses for improper or covered plates, including those with numbers or letters scratched off or painted over, as observed by The Post on several vehicles Sunday.
Between January 6 and January 8, some 200 tickets were issued, at least three arrests were made, according to NYPD.
When contacted about posters selling the ghost plate kits, Instagram did not respond to a request for comment and was still showing the products Wednesday.
TikTok removed a post for film that goes over license plate characters after receiving an inquiry from The Post and a spokesperson said the content violated the site’s community guidelines.
On Amazon, a product touted as a ‘Camera Blocking Plate Cover’ was removed after The Post contacted the site. However, others were still available.
Manhattan-based Kron acknowledges buying or selling the license shading equipment may currently be unenforceable – “You can buy black nail polish, but you can’t use it to obscure a license plate,” he said – but it could change over time, “Down the pike they [may] come out with a law saying it’s illegal to sell these things.”
