Washington, D.C. Dealer License Plates

Nov. 2004-Oct. 2005	Nov. 2005-Oct. 2006
Nov. 2006-Oct. 2007	Nov. 2007-Oct. 2008

Nov. 2008-Oct. 2009 Our best representation of the true color of the 2008-09 dealer plate is shown in these images of no. 7240, pictured in direct sunlight. No. 7353 (above right) shows how much darker the plate looks when not in the sun. Dealer registration numbers continue to be assigned sequentially, regardless of the annual plate upon which they are displayed, as shown in numbers on the 2004-05 and later plates pictured above.

Nov. 2010-Oct. 2011 Examples of the bright yellow 2010-11 dealer plate have been observed both with and without validation stickers. Why some plates have stickers even though the expiration date is printed in the upper corners is unknown. Perhaps the date was printed incorrectly on earlier plates of the series. Note that the 2009 and 2010 color schemes repeat those of 2005 and 2006. Is this just a coincidence, or is a pattern emerging?

As in most U.S. jurisdictions, one of the oldest registrations types in the District of Columbia is that issued especially for use by motor vehicle dealers. Distinctive license plates, with a letter D prefix, were first issued for dealers in 1919. One might expect the type to have been introduced a year earlier, when annual, dated plates for passenger cars and motorcycles made their debut. However, when plans for the 1918 plates were being made during 1917, as the porcelain era drew to a close, officials realized that they no idea how many valid registrations were in use by dealers. In fact, they also had absolutely no idea of the quantity of private passenger and motorcycle registrations, because 1903-17 registrations were permanent, with no renewal (annual or otherwise) required. This problem, which was largely responsible for the retirement of the District's permanent 1907-17 porcelain enamel plates, made it impossible to estimate how many plates to have made. Officials had no choice but to have 1918 auto plates made (and it turns out that they underestimated the number required and had to have more made during the year), but they had the option of not issuing distinctive plates for dealers. They apparently kept track of how many auto plates were issued for use by dealers so that for 1919 they were able to order a reasonable number of D-prefix markers.

Washington, D.C. dealer plates have almost always featured a letter D prefix. From 1948 through the 1960 registration year (i.e. the plate marked 3-31-61), the presence of a D as opposed to any other letter in the prefix position was the only feature that distinguished dealer plates from plates of other types. This apparently led to difficulties in enforcing regulations to the effect that vehicles upon which these plates were displayed could be used only for demonstration purposes, and not for general transportation, causing the Commissioners in April 1960 to change the plate format (effective with 1961 plates) to include the type name, DEALER, and an all-numeric registration. Numbers began at 1000, and the type name was embossed in small letters at the top. The highest observed number is 3514. The official justification for this change is as follows: "It is felt that by spelling out the word DEALER, these tags will be more conspicuous and will lead to better enforcement of their proper use than the present method of using a prefix such as DA, DB, DC, etc."

For 1962 the type name was made more prominent and the numbering configuration was changed back to that of 1957-60: a two-letter prefix comprised of a D followed by a serial letter. Whether numbers in each letter series began at 001 (e.g. DA-001) or 100 for 1962, 1963, and 1964 is unknown, but for 1965 numbers as low as DA-003 and DA-006 are known.

The numbering format was changed again for 1966. Rather than assign number DB-001 after DA-999, numbers continued at DA-1000, DA-1001, etc., so that all 1966 dealer plates have a DA prefix. The highest observed number is DA-2168, which would have been no. DC-170 under the 1965 numbering system. This format continued to be used into the early 1970s, probably until the 1974 base, the first true multi-year baseplate for dealers, was introduced in April of that year.

With the exception of 1945, when all D.C. plates were issued singly, from 1919 until 1961 dealer plates were issued in pairs. Since 1962, however, only one plate has been issued for each registration. The change was made due to repeated instances of unscrupulous dealers using the two plates of a pair on different vehicles, thereby evading the payment of registration fees.

The city name was changed from DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA to WASHINGTON, D.C. on the 1969 (exp. 3-31-70) plate, four years after the change was made on plates of most other types (including passenger). From 1974 through 2004, dealer plates shared characteristics and periods of use with plates of other types.

A far more noticeable change was made in late 2005 when the background color was altered in order to make these limited-use plates more visible. Like Manufacturer, a new type at the time, annual dealer plates that expired on Oct. 31, 2005 are white on red, and those that expired on Oct. 31, 2006 are white on blue. Plates of these types do not share a color scheme for their 2006-07 issues, however. Based upon registration numbers on the examples shown it appears that they begin on plates of a new registration year close to where the previous year ended as opposed to beginning at 0000 or 0001 annually.

An interesting plate-related custom in Washington, D.C. is that vehicle dealers routinely affix their registration certificate to the back of their plate. Today this is often accomplished with tape, but for many years the registration was laminated or sewn into a plastic sleeve that was then riveted to the plate. That's why you can see rivet heads (or extra holes where rivets were removed) on several of the plates pictured above.

	This page last updated on January 1, 2012
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