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Tinted License Plate Covers

Tinted License Plate Covers

Gus Philpott
Woodstock Advocate
April 4, 2008

Do you have covers (tinted or clear) over your front and/or rear license plate? You do?

You'll want to know about a change in state law, making any cover over a license plate unlawful. I'm unsure of the effective date; it may be July 1, 2008.

The drivers I see whose cars have tinted license plates that obscure the letters or numbers of the plates are often speeding, tailgating, passing unlawfully and committing other traffic violations. It's hard for the PhotoRadar of the Illinois State Police to photograph clearly the plates when speeders are in highway work zones, and the Illinois Tollway has the same problem with toll cheaters.

The legislature has passed a good law. After the law becomes effective, the police officer won't have to decide the degree to which a cover obscures a plate, as he must under the current law. If there is a cover over the plate, it's a violation.

If you are interested in avoiding a traffic stop and a ticket, you might just want to remove the covers now.