Cop says my hitch rack is illegal because it obstructs my License plate.

[Boeing]

Got a ticket this morning on way home from early ride. "obstructing License Plate"?

He told me I have to mount the plate on the rack when using it. he said it is more prevalent when the hitch is in the upright position.

this is a very popular rack design in various forms and multiple companies?

what gives?

sounds like some bs to me. I never ask tough questions when a cop is in my ear so I didnt explore it more. thank you sir may I have another.

 

[elapid]

Depends where you are, but I was pulled over for this about 15 years ago in Australia. Got off with a warning, but was advised to use a different bike rack or mount the number plate differently so it was not obscured by the bikes. Not sure of the rules in California.

 

[winkybiker]

Got a ticket this morning on way home from early ride. "obstructing License Plate"?

He told me I have to mount the plate on the rack when using it. he said it is more prevalent when the hitch is in the upright position.

this is a very popular rack design in various forms and multiple companies?

what gives?

sounds like some bs to me. I never ask tough questions when a cop is in my ear so I didnt explore it more. thank you sir may I have another.

Ride home from the ride. Problem solved.

 

[knewcleardaze]

Have a look at your state police website.
Maybe it will shed some light on the visibility requirements of registration tags?
Years ago I got a ticket for "left wheels against the curb" on a two way street.

 

[dsut4392]

Got a ticket this morning on way home from early ride. "obstructing License Plate"?
<snip>

what gives?
<snip>

Did you consider the significance of the ticket being "obstructing License plate" as opposed to "obstructing license plate with bike rack"?

What gives with people visiting internet cycling forums to ask questions about traffic codes, as opposed to just consulting the rule book readily obtained from their local authority[first result]?

 

[Boeing]

Did you consider the significance of the ticket being "obstructing License plate" as opposed to "obstructing license plate with bike rack"?

What gives with people visiting internet cycling forums to ask questions about traffic codes, as opposed to just consulting the rule book readily obtained from their local authority[first result]?

What gives with people patronizing posts . . .

 

[Boeing]

Have a look at your state police website.
Maybe it will shed some light on the visibility requirements of registration tags?
Years ago I got a ticket for "left wheels against the curb" on a two way street.

The code is quite vague and has a lot to do with lighting and and or 5th wheel trailer issues. open apparently to interpretation local PD personnel mood swings not unlike the poster above. perhaps I invaded his territory and hurt his vibe too.

there is nothing about this rack with or with out bikes that obstructs light. the plate is viable from multiple angles

called rack n road and shop with Thule USA rep. According to Thule their product satisfies CA state vehicle code (hence the post as it is a bike product) if mounting a plate on their product was necessary they would have known I have the 2 bike rack and the 4 bike attachment is in code as well

Rack n Road said they have installed thousands of hitch racks and never encountered this. ironically they installed one just like it for an officer of the same local authority.

 

[ElChingon]

1. Go find the instructions that came with said hitch, did it list out you had to make sure the lic. plate wasn't obstructed. If yes, you need to pay the ticket and fix it. If no, then you can call them and tell them you want your money back and that you are considering suing them for selling you an illegal device for your vehicle. Just scare tactics, see what they say as most likely you are not their first customer with said issue, they may have a solution.

2. Call DMV and ask for the official explanation of the infraction, is there wiggle room for you to get out of it?

3. Roll the dice and go to court with the info from 1 and 2 and see how you can get out of paying it.

 

[Boeing]

1. Go find the instructions that came with said hitch, did it list out you had to make sure the lic. plate wasn't obstructed. If yes, you need to pay the ticket and fix it. If no, then you can call them and tell them you want your money back and that you are considering suing them for selling you an illegal device for your vehicle. Just scare tactics, see what they say as most likely you are not their first customer with said issue, they may have a solution.

2. Call DMV and ask for the official explanation of the infraction, is there wiggle room for you to get out of it?

3. Roll the dice and go to court with the info from 1 and 2 and see how you can get out of paying it.

and I thought he was stopping me to look at my bike

 

[avanti]

Sorry to tell you this but section 5201 (a) and (c) of the California Vehicle Code clearly says that licence plates must not be obscured.
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/veh_code.pdf

My guess is that this law has to do with the electronic plate readers installed on toll roads and bridges, police cars, and traffic lights.

 

[pedaling squares]

There's good tickets, and bad tickets. That there is a bad ticket.
I would have stopped you to check out your bike, then given you a ticket for pairing a SRAM group with a decent frame.

 

[Boeing]

Sorry to tell you this but section 5201 (a) and (c) of the California Vehicle Code clearly says that licence plates must not be obscured.
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/veh_code.pdf

My guess is that this law has to do with the electronic plate readers installed on toll roads and bridges, police cars, and traffic lights.

I called my insurance guy


Insurance companies can find you liable if you get rear ended with a hitch rack on. obstructing brake lights and turn signals.

So will Yakima and thule be offering the trailer light kit and plate hanger soon?

I see safety issues sure.

But if a cop went to any of the mtn bike trail-heads here in socal they could wright up 4 of every 10 vehicles there.

Not one bike shop I have called can answer and Rack N Road too.

Nothing in the Thule manual about this

for the literal readers and posters here I am not looking to justify anything.

If it is a vehicle code issue and a safety issue then shops and the mfg should know about this right? Does a consumer have a right to assume the product is too code?

 

[Boeing]

There's good tickets, and bad tickets. That there is a bad ticket.
I would have stopped you to check out your bike, then given you a ticket for pairing a SRAM group with a decent frame.

ok I am SRAM lifer

even the xx1 on the tallboy and my v10?

 

[darkcloud]

This being SoCal, I think it's all about revenue.

 

[avanti]

I ose an Odyssey to transport my bikes but when I buy a new vehicle I will check out Colorado rules on trailer-hitch bike racks (I used to live in SoCal until a year ago).
I wonder if one can purchase an additional plate or have one made to mount on the bike rack or bike.

 

[StyrbjornSterki]

I expect every jurisdiction on earth that licenses motor vehicles has a code requiring that the number plate not be obstructed. It all comes down to interpretation. Is the license obstructed if there's a spec of mud on it? Or how about a large squashed bug?

If the vertical post of the rack is narrower than the distance between the viewer's eyes, the numbers still are legible. Either the cop was blind in one eye or he has a chubby for you. My money's on the latter.

 

[PCutter]

Depends where you are, but I was pulled over for this about 15 years ago in Australia. Got off with a warning, but was advised to use a different bike rack or mount the number plate differently so it was not obscured by the bikes. Not sure of the rules in California.

I actually was fined for this (in Aus) and probably about 15yrs ago as well. My understanding now is that even having it attached to your tow ball when not having a bike attached is illegal in Australia as it presents a risk to pedestrians/rear end crash issues

 

[ElChingon]

I called my insurance guy


Insurance companies can find you liable if you get rear ended with a hitch rack on. obstructing brake lights and turn signals.

So will Yakima and thule be offering the trailer light kit and plate hanger soon?

I see safety issues sure.

But if a cop went to any of the mtn bike trail-heads here in socal they could wright up 4 of every 10 vehicles there.

Not one bike shop I have called can answer and Rack N Road too.

Nothing in the Thule manual about this

for the literal readers and posters here I am not looking to justify anything.

If it is a vehicle code issue and a safety issue then shops and the mfg should know about this right? Does a consumer have a right to assume the product is too code?

Well I still think you can hold them to some of the fault, just takes the right wording in your e-mail to them.

 

[winkybiker]

This being anywhere on earth, I think it's all about revenue.

I fixed it for you.

 

[ustabe]

My guess is that this law has to do with the electronic plate readers installed on toll roads and bridges, police cars, and traffic lights.

Probably also has something to do with making your vehicle easily identifiable should it be involved in a crime.

 

[dsut4392]

What gives with people patronizing posts . . .

Haha, you should have seen the sanctimonious response I wrote first, I toned it down for you before I posted

Don't get me wrong, I drive with the same kind of rack on my car, but I know it's not legal (without an accessory plate, which I haven't got around to purchasing) and wouldn't go threatening to sue the rack manufacturer, blaming the cop for enforcing the rules, or whining if I got ticketed.

The fact that your plate is readable from multiple angles is irrelevant, the person/camera that needs to read your plate is usually stationary, and only observing a narrow field of view.
-highway patrol stopped by the side of the road won't be turning his head as each car comes past, he'll be scanning traffic at 11 o'clock out the front window: he can't read your full plate.
-automatic traffic camera looking straight ahead from overhead bridge: can't read your full plate

 

[Boeing]

Haha, you should have seen the sanctimonious response I wrote first, I toned it down for you before I posted

Don't get me wrong, I drive with the same kind of rack on my car, but I know it's not legal (without an accessory plate, which I haven't got around to purchasing) and wouldn't go threatening to sue the rack manufacturer, blaming the cop for enforcing the rules, or whining if I got ticketed.

The fact that your plate is readable from multiple angles is irrelevant, the person/camera that needs to read your plate is usually stationary, and only observing a narrow field of view.
-highway patrol stopped by the side of the road won't be turning his head as each car comes past, he'll be scanning traffic at 11 o'clock out the front window: he can't read your full plate.
-automatic traffic camera looking straight ahead from overhead bridge: can't read your full plate

of course this is about you

 

[hiero2]

I got a ticket years ago for riding in the road or something. I had a riding buddy who was a lawyer and agreed to take the case.

We had a choice, he said. Either spend a lot of money and fight the law, or try and make the judge see a little sense that this might not be a "good" ticket. The 2nd approach offended my sensibility and honor, and it wasn't really fully honest - but it got the ticket cancelled.

Seems to me you're kinda in a similar spot - a cop with a personal, but perhaps somewhat valid, outlook about how things ought to be - and you could turn it into a campaign - but you'd have to accept that doing so might take you down a very rough, and very expensive road. We can't always be Gandhi.

 

[Boeing]

Haha, you should have seen the sanctimonious response I wrote first, I toned it down for you before I posted

Don't get me wrong, I drive with the same kind of rack on my car, but I know it's not legal (without an accessory plate, which I haven't got around to purchasing) and wouldn't go threatening to sue the rack manufacturer, blaming the cop for enforcing the rules, or whining if I got ticketed.

The fact that your plate is readable from multiple angles is irrelevant, the person/camera that needs to read your plate is usually stationary, and only observing a narrow field of view.
-highway patrol stopped by the side of the road won't be turning his head as each car comes past, he'll be scanning traffic at 11 o'clock out the front window: he can't read your full plate.
-automatic traffic camera looking straight ahead from overhead bridge: can't read your full plate

listen you (#*#$%&%#*(#%&%ahhh forget it.....

exactly right. I took car down to station hitched removed . they charged me a $20 "processing fee" said it wasnt a fine thought????

I asked a little nicer than I post here and they said that cars are removing front plates and putting hitch racks on and running toll ways. we have a lot of toll access to some of the socal trails here in the OC. A mechanic at The PAth bike shop I was at in Santiago said he got one too. must have been an 2013 agenda item for eh local finest

Maybe I got profiled (like I profiled you here) and they were looking for an excuse to search my dash and trunk

 

[Boeing]

good work mods but allow me to suggest you were late to the game here..... where you been?