ADOT: Defacing an Arizona license plate considered illegal

PHOENIX — Who doesn’t love a witty, personalized license plate?

However, Harold Sanders with the Arizona Department of Transportation wants to remind drivers it’s illegal to make any changes to an Arizona license plate on your own.

“You cannot change, alter the design of an Arizona license plate, at all,” Sanders said.

There are stiff fines and penalties for people who add or take away from their plates using paint, tape, stickers or anything that alters the plate.

Police will pull you over, and it is a misdemeanor, according to Sanders.

There are 50 different designs available for your license plate, should you want to add your own personal flair.

“There really isn’t a need for someone to try to be creative and add something else to a particular plate,” he said. “We’ve got a wide variety of very beautiful license plates.

Once you’ve added a sticker or tape, it’ll likely ruin the plate if you then try to take it off.

And there are stiff fines and penalties for offenders, he said.