Well, the last I heard (and there's about 45 days left in 2004) you
couldn't buy Microchipped plates.

If true it's a typical Public Sector IT project i.e. it doesn't work.

Quite likely! My wife works in the NHS and you should hear
about the amount they waste on failed IT projects.

It will annoy a lot of people, and the chips will be as tamper proof as
the others, i.e. not at all. Or people will simply bust them (can you
imagine the amount of hammering electronics on a car number plate will
take).

This article is very misleading. The microchip is actually a transponder
which sends out a unique identifier when read by an appropriate device.
It does not in itself contain any information and is a sealed unit. There
is
no programming interface, the ID is set by the manufacturer in the
manufacturing process. That unique identifier will be used to look up the
information on the computer database. The system is actually no
different from what is in existence now with automatic number plate
readers fitted to cameras and police cars. These microchips are
tansponders and are highly robust, and making a reading of the ID
is easier than reading a written number plate, which could be
mis-represented, dirty, or just hard to read due to ambient conditions.
Transponders suffer none of these problems.

Or you could simply fake a plate that looks like a real one - so how will
the "automatic detection" know if a car is there or not ?

Because the device reading the microchip will not detect its existence in
the plate. Simple - if it ain't there, then it is fake!

How will it cope with people who are insured rather than cars - people on
company insurance ?

Because on policies that have multiple vehicles and multiple drivers the
cars are explicitly detailed on the policy. This in nothing new, the
insurance / tax & mot status of all vehicles is already part of a database
(MID for insurance) which the police can look up live now by reading
your number plate. There are many police cars with this system
already fitted, and it is used very sucessfully.

How will it know the driver is insured to drive the car - all it will know
is that there is *some* insurance on the car.

as above - nothing new. Just because you are stopped does not
mean you are instantly guilty, it just means that there is no
record of insurance for that vehicle (or of you being insured to
drive it) if you can later produce documentary evidence to the
police then no action is taken - this is no different from what
happens now when you get a producer.

It can't surely store "insurance validity" - if you cancel insurance will
you detach the plates and take them in so they can be reprogrammed ?

What will happen regarding foreign registered vehicles ?

Such a miniscule problem, why worry?

Getting Microchips for £1.00 is no problem ; hell they are cheaper than
that. Getting something that will work and keep working for £1.00 is a
different matter entirely.

I started work using transponders 15 years ago for an identification
system in which they were subject to an industrial washing process,
then temperatures of nearly 200deg C and they continued to work
just fine!

Anything that helps stop scum get away with no insurance/tax/mot
has to be good. If it inconveniences legal motorists (although
highly unlikely) then so what.

Matt.