Utah’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) rejected more than 1,000 custom license plate applications in 2024, citing various reasons for denial. ABC4.com obtained a list detailing the rejected requests and the explanations behind them.
DMV Guidelines for Vanity Plates
Utah’s DMV enforces specific rules regarding personalized license plates, prohibiting combinations that are deemed offensive, misleading, or inappropriate. If a requested plate violates these standards, it is automatically denied.
Most Common Reasons for Denial
The most frequent reason for a vanity plate rejection was duplication—out of 1,035 applications, 442 were denied because the requested combinations were already in use.
The second most common reason for rejection fell under the category labeled “VDPO” (vulgar, derogatory, profane, or obscene). A total of 282 applications were denied for this reason, with examples including “FCANCER,” “SEXYLDY,” “ICUP,” and various iterations of “hawk tuah.”
Another major category for rejections was “series conflict,” where plate requests were denied because they were too similar to existing DMV-issued license plate series.
Other Notable Denials
- Sexual references led to 74 rejections, with examples like “DEZNUTS” and “M0AN.”
- Drug-related terms resulted in 45 denials, including “ST0NED” and “CRKH0US.”
- Public welfare concerns, such as references to weapons or crimes, caused plates like “MURDR” and “B0MBER” to be denied.
Some of the least common reasons for rejections included:
- Citizenship status (1 rejection)
- Sexual orientation (4 rejections)
- Disability references (5 rejections)
- Ethnic, racial, or religious content (12 rejections)
- Age-related terms (29 rejections)
The age-related category includes plates that were deemed disparaging to certain age groups, according to the DMV.
Cost of Vanity Plates in Utah
For those whose requests are approved, the cost of a customized license plate varies by design, with an annual fee of $10 added to the standard registration renewal.
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