Do I really need an L-plate?

[daniely]

On ya learners the law requires that you have an L-plate. It is SUPPOSED to gain the respect and consideration of other drivers and riders on the road. Sure, riders no problem, but (from what I've heard) drivers?


And ditch the L plate.... to many cocks like to pick on learners.

Once you get over mounting it without blocking the indicators, brake light, number plate (guess that ones not so important, could maybe use to my advantage? :shifty:) it seems that the only place left is sticking out somewhere where it could get snapped off in a slipstream (planning on having a bit of a slipstream, can't get too much off a GN250 though)

Maybe there are benefits...

having my L plate on has gotten me out of 2 fines so far...

But all in all I reckon you wouldn't get into too much trouble without one

I got pulled over 42 times in 2 years on a learners with no L plate...
Never ticketed for it.

Plus the L-plate makes you look like a bit of a pleb, but safety before cool factor I guess (hmmmm.... :shifty:)

So, any ideas? Thanks!

[Mom]

First things first mate, I would take the advice from SM you have quoted with a grain of salt.

Some people do use one, some dont. Yes there is some thinking that says you get targetted wearing the L plate of doom, but it is just a likely to be because you are feeling a bit vulnerable anyway. Insurance is an issue too.

[FJRider]

Conditions of Licence... Christchurch is not the same as Auckland. There's not as many "cocks" down here.
Its still a rat race here...... but the rats run slower..

Ignore the "cocks" online that tell you differently...

At the end of the day its YOUR licence... you choose.

[Slyer]

It's your $400!
Make sure you don't get caught speeding or your fine will be many times what it would be otherwise.

[Jonno.]

Risk of $400 (possibly multiple) vs. yellow sign for 6 months.
:Punk:

[mark247]

Your motorcycle will still run perfectly fine with no problems without an L Plate =P

So no you dont need it.

On a serious note, i never used one, got pulled over heaps, never got ticketed. They never even mentioned it.

[yungatart]

Use it!
It is not the target that plenty claim it to be. The cost of not having it far outweighs the cost of having one.
Can you afford the $400...in multilples?

[mark247]

Use it!
It is not the target that plenty claim it to be. The cost of not having it far outweighs the cost of having one.
Can you afford the $400...in multilples?

I know an idiot who had over $4000 worth of L plate fines. They actually gave him home detention to wipe them. Obvously not just for those fines. But thats how i found out he had that much in "failing to use an L plate" fines, I saw his home detention contract lol.

So i guess for some people it is worth it =D

[Vern]

First things first mate, I would take the advice from SM you have quoted with a grain of salt.

Some people do use one, some dont. Yes there is some thinking that says you get targetted wearing the L plate of doom, but it is just a likely to be because you are feeling a bit vulnerable anyway. Insurance is an issue too.
I have a friend here than does not have one on and when we go out riding at this stage we are not on the main hiways but have past the police with no problems. My daughter in Palmerston North has hers on the bike and when we go out together motorists take no notice of it anyway and we both wear hi vis jackets and stand out. But the law said put on so on it goes. Vern:niceone:

[Ms Piggy]

I rode for a long time without an L plate on but then someone mentioned that it may void my insurance, I never checked it out so I'm not sure if it's true, but at the end of the day I decided it's better to be safe than sorry and I tied it back on after riding for almost 4 years without it.

It's a good motivation to get your butt into gear and sit your Restricted ASAP too! :niceone:

[Blackshear]

S'not gonna make you any slower brah.
The two times I have not been ticketed:
"70-ish is a bit fast, innit? You're lucky you're wearing your L-plate, or I was gonna do ya. (Bout $700 right there.) You're lucky I'm a biker, too!"
"I know this is a back road, and it's really fucking wide, but keep your speed below licence loosing territory, 'K son? That yellow LEARNING plate is there for a reason. SO REMEMBER IT'S THERE!"

Yessuh nosuh off'suh :pinch:

I don't see why people see it as such a lame thing.

[MSTRS]

Dicks in cages will still be dicks with or without the L plate.
If you never have an accident, or never pulled by the plod...then it's not an issue. Otherwise...:wavey: $

[BiK3RChiK]

Your decision in the end, but this is my experience...

http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showpost.php?p=1844803&postcount=22

[cs363]

Use it!
It is not the target that plenty claim it to be. The cost of not having it far outweighs the cost of having one.
Can you afford the $400...in multilples?



That's good advice right there!

[Sly_guy]

Originally Posted by skidMark
I got pulled over 42 times in 2 years on a learners with no L plate...
Never ticketed for it.

Me thinks there is a serious amount of bullshit there !!!!

My 2c...

I've been pulled over once... and it was the ONE and ONLY time I had taken my plate off for a ride....

The result... $400 for no L Plate, (ok, and the $400 for the speeding)...

Ok, the office in question was a right royal cock with the personality of an Albatross, however, by my maths, that's a 100% hit rate... I'm sticking with the plate for the rest of my 6 months!

[Dean]

You can ride without an l plate, it really depends on your confidence,skill.
If the police can see you are in control and look confident they may think you are a restricted rider.But then again having your L plate has its advantages, foreinstance some (not all) cagers will give you room, space if they see you are struggling a little. So if you make a mistake their is a chance that the cagers will be within braking distance.
But a disadvantage to not having your l plate on is cagers will treat you like a full licenced rider, most cagers dont know your cc or much about bikes.They will expect you to do manouvers or put you in situations that require a while of experience.

[nivram]

L Plates or optional for learners just like helmets:2thumbsup

[dpex]

Use it!
It is not the target that plenty claim it to be. The cost of not having it far outweighs the cost of having one.
Can you afford the $400...in multilples?

I disagree, entirely.

A friend of mine...yes, I have one friend...new to biking, complete with L-Plate, kept on about feeling he was being attacked. So I chose to experiment, clipped on an L-Plate to old Zimmer and rode in what I presumed was the hesitant fashion of a newbie. Bugger me! The number of attempted shoves, tail-gatings, over-takings went off the scale.

I kept a good record of the week I spent with an L-plate and reported my experiences to LTNZ. They actually took it seriously and assert they're looking at changing the legislation.

Yeah. L-Plates are, in my opinion, an invitation to idiots to get their rocks off.

[MadDuck]

Yeah. L-Plates are, in my opinion, an invitation to idiots to get their rocks off.

I disagree. If I see an L-Plate rider I know that I need to take care when passing. If they dont have an L-Plate and behave like a prat they will get a signal from me that is most unbecoming a lady but most becoming a harley rider :whistle:

[McWild]

Might as well, I had mine for the whole period and didn't have any more problems than I do now. If it's an image thing, then you have to wonder who you're riding for.

Main reason if you ask me though is to keep those insurance companies happy... you get rear ended after an emergency stop or whatever and that insurance company will be looking for any excuse not to pay the whole some.

[Manxman]

Conditions of Licence... Christchurch is not the same as Auckland. There's not as many "cocks" down here.

Yup. No cocks, just pussies. :bleh::innocent:

Just kidding...:pinch:

/back on topic/

[Monolith NZ]

I had no plate for the first 5 months. I was pulled twice with nothing but a warning. But I got unlucky and the same cop who pulled me the first time saw that I still didn't have it on.

Resulted in the $400, BUT the amount of fun I had riding from Nelson to CHCH twice over the xmas holidays were very fun valuable experiences (travelling above 70km/h of course). Totally worth the $400.

It really depends on wether having the plate on has any real serious restraints on you or not. Your call.

[Squiggles]

Just remember, you are riding outside your license conditions (and, if noted down in the event of an accident), this could affect your insurance...

I've always suggested people put it on, then ride safely (100k where required to avoid being tail gated/prevent holding up traffic)

[Supermac Jr]

I've always suggested people put it on, then ride safely (100k where required to avoid being tail gated/prevent holding up traffic)


Trip home yesterday at 100km/h with a cop behind me - yes with a L-plate. No trouble at all. I don't really want to make a donation to Cop-City Council. I haven't had any trouble with the plate. If someone give you attitude you would've copped it with/without an L-plate.

Your choice. ...

[Harvd]

i never put mine on, not even when i rode to the basic handing test and then to the learner licence, the only time i did was for the restricted test. the main reason being i had to ride a fair few 100k roads and like hell i was going to be a danger to myself by riding at 70 and getting passd like a lycra clad cyclist...


and theyre gaaaay

[Maha]

I disagree. If I see an L-Plate rider I know that I need to take care when passing. If they dont have an L-Plate and behave like a prat they will get a signal from me that is most unbecoming a lady but most becoming a harley rider :whistle:

Being able to lick your eyebrow is not exclusive to Harley Riders...:oi-grr:

[CookMySock]

Use it! It is not the target that plenty claim it to be.I agree. Use the L plate.


Dicks in cages will still be dicks with or without the L plate.
If you never have an accident, or never pulled by the plod...then it's not an issue. Otherwise...:wavey: $Dicks in cages are USUALLY only being dicks because they feel frustrated following a slow wobbly L-Plater. Like this ;




I disagree, entirely. [...] clipped on an L-Plate to old Zimmer and rode in what I presumed was the hesitant fashion of a newbie.What mr dpex isn't getting, is that there two combined things there - the L-Plate and the riding around in front of people going slow and blocking the traffic. One or the other could be creating the problem - you decide.

I have taught two P-Platers to ride, and one of them rode very carefully and the other one was a 15 yearold lad (you can make up you own mind about how he rides.. :oi-grr: )
One of these riders had all sorts of stupidity done to them, and the other one had NOTHING happen to them. So, make up your mind for yourself about that, but I suggest to you that its all about you, and not about them. (isn't it so often like that?)

For myself, I didn't ride with an L-Plate because I didn't want to - it was embarrassing to ride a huge noisy vtwin 650 with L Plates on.. Plain and simple. Although, I was riding a very new looking bike, with very new looking gear, and I rode it and made it look like I knew what I was doing.

I didn't get stopped. I was lucky. Ya pay ya money and ya rolls ya dice.

Steve

[robo555]

I only had the L plate on for half a day, the day I took my restricted.

I never behaved badly, and hardly rode out of town during my learners period though, so chance of police stopping me was slim.

[Tubbsy]

In my limited experience, it does feel to me like it's an invitation to car drivers to try and overtake as soon as they can, resulting in tailgating and them beiong annoyed. It's almost like it's conditioned like Pavlov and his dogs. L-Plate = must overtake. I still won't be taking mine off....but I can def see a difference in the way I get treated by cagers to the way non-plated riders do.

Although in saying that....I still think they're a good thing because it tells motorists to give you room, whether they do or not. :ride:

["Rambo"]

For 7 months now I have had my l plate on, don't have the funds to sit my restricted yet. And every rally I go to people say take it off. I have it on for a reason, $400 is a start, hopefully the respect other riders give me and the space I could require if needed. But I sit on 100km with no police problems, at least I'm not holding up traffic or being a dick then whats the problem. Part of the conditions of your license is the have your L-plate attached to your bike, I know 70km is a stupid speed for those that can handle the extra speed but there there are others out there that can't handle going faster.

[JimO]

one of my boys got knocked off his old NZ250 by a old geezer who went through a comp stop, he was doing nothing wrong, the accident was the old guys fault 100%, that didnt stop the :Police: checking everything on the bike and his licence for something to fine him for, use the L plate i have ridden his bike with the L plate on and never had a problem with other road users and when i see a L plater i always give them plenty of room and stay well back from them so they do not feel pressured

[hayden123]

I think I would have my L plate on driving around town since there's no point not having it really but on the open road is a different story. However, in my experience of riding without an L plate or a number plate for that matter after someone rear-ended me, cops don't seem to care. I rode past a number of cops and none of them even looked twice. Maybe it was because the mudguard had such a clean break that you wouldn't notice anything strange about the bike (just a perfectly normal track bike speeding up state highway 1) until you had thought about it for a few seconds at which stage it would be too late to give chase. Meh, their loss.

[Cheshire Cat]

Just hurry up and get your restricted if you dont like having an L plate :p

[cs363]

Just hurry up and get your restricted if you dont like having an L plate :p

There's many a true word spoken in jest, as some wise man once said.

The way I see it, it's required by law so you're just asking for trouble not running one (particularly as a noob you're likely to make a mistake somewhere that will draw the attention of the :Police:, no reason to give them another thing to write on the ticket and cost you $$$) and plus it's only 6 months out of your life, get over it.
The only people who seem to worry about having one are those who think it somehow translates to an "I've got a tiny penis sign" on the back of their bike.... :whistle:

[The Pastor]

i never had an L plate and I was fine. (hhahahahah )

[Skuzzlebutt]

Any ideas where I can buy an L-plate in Auckland? I've been to 5 different shops so far including my bike shop, Repco, Supercheap, $2 Shop and all I've found are those floppy stickers for cars.

I'm trying to do the right thing!

:)

[Cheshire Cat]

The only people who seem to worry about having one are those who think it somehow translates to an "I've got a tiny penis sign" on the back of their bike.... :whistle:

:laugh: True that! I dont have a penis so I'm not worried! :D

[Cheshire Cat]

Any ideas where I can buy an L-plate in Auckland? I've been to 5 different shops so far including my bike shop, Repco, Supercheap, $2 Shop and all I've found are those floppy stickers for cars.

I'm trying to do the right thing!

:)

USELESS!! Write a letter to them and complain!

I've got two extras....I'll send them to ya if you want:sunny:

[ZK-Awesome]

Any ideas where I can buy an L-plate in Auckland? I've been to 5 different shops so far including my bike shop, Repco, Supercheap, $2 Shop and all I've found are those floppy stickers for cars.

I'm trying to do the right thing!

:)

I just used a floppy car one -punched two holes in the top, and bolted it through some convenient holes in the rear mudguard.:done:

[Skuzzlebutt]

USELESS!! Write a letter to them and complain!

I've got two extras....I'll send them to ya if you want:sunny:

A very kind offer! :)

[Skuzzlebutt]

I just used a floppy car one -punched two holes in the top, and bolted it through some convenient holes in the rear mudguard.:done:

I actually bought one of the floppy ones in desperation with the intention of glueing it to an old icecream container lid :mellow:

[Laxi]

took my l plate off quite a while back after an officer told me to move my registration (which was where i fixed the l plate) and couldnt figure out where to mount it, been pulled up twice without it, neither time did they look twice

[lankyman]

I owned a MC21 for about 18 months with no bike liscene, got pulled up a cupla times and just got told to hurry up and get it (the fact that I hold all other classes of liscence probably helped that). When I got my learners 2 years ago, I went out and bought my NC30 and have never used an L-plate (would be a bit fuckin stupid puttin one on a 400 anyway). I'm now elidgable for my full and have never been pulled up or ticketed for anything on the viffer (touch wood). Have been through drink driving busts a coupla times (one time was shitting myself coz my warrent was about a week out as well) but they hardly ever check you're liscence. Maybe you just hafta be a slimey bastard like me lol

[Cheshire Cat]

I actually bought one of the floppy ones in desperation with the intention of glueing it to an old icecream container lid :mellow:

Good idea!:laugh:

[Indiana_Jones]

If you're not worried about insurance etc (you know what insurance companies are like) then don't bother.

-Indy

[Insanity_rules]

took my l plate off quite a while back after an officer told me to move my registration (which was where i fixed the l plate) and couldnt figure out where to mount it, been pulled up twice without it, neither time did they look twice

You do live dangerously don't ya? Hey what are you doing not at work at 7 minutes to four on a week day then?

[Laxi]

You do live dangerously don't ya? Hey what are you doing not at work at 7 minutes to four on a week day then?

hmm dangerously you say? hands up who out of the two of us has recieved road rash in the last 6 mths:girlfight: (actually make that the last 5 mths:innocent:) its friday, man!!! actually was hoping to chase cloggys tag this arvo:laugh:

[LaytonNZ]

i rode with my L-plate for 2 weeks to get the jist of things, then ditched it. never got pulled up...only once at a check point but i said i had my restricted and started looking in my 1000 pockets the cop soon got bored and let me go:doh:

[=cJ=]

I didn't wear mine.

My reasoning was that there was no way I felt safe sticking to 70 km/hr on the open road and getting passed by all and sundry and generally creating a menace and source of frustration.

Given that wearing the yellow L plate clearly advertised I could only go 70, I figured I had better not advertise I was breaking my speed limit, so I ditched it.

[phaedrus01]

So anyways I'm riding home the other day and end up at the lights behind a guy on an SV400..... with an L plate... I'm just left confused...:bash: Isn't that like asking for it, its a nice thumpy bike that clearly isn't a 250.... :wacko:

[BiK3RChiK]

So anyways I'm riding home the other day and end up at the lights behind a guy on an SV400..... with an L plate... I'm just left confused...:bash: Isn't that like asking for it, its a nice thumpy bike that clearly isn't a 250.... :wacko:
Haven't you heard of exemptions?:whistle:

[mister.koz]

You're learning to ride and you are now part of a fairly small group of people who have passion for the road, the L plate should be a trophy; show it off!!

I Didn't get pulled over L-plate or not because i didn't take the piss, in fact i was too scared to speed because i was learning and worried about bruising my baby.

Use the 6 months to find your low speed hiccups and develop awareness on the road and low speed skill, then use your time on your restricted to learn how higher speeds feel.

You are better off riding in a way that is safe and not worrying about the plod because if you aren't being an idiot they will leave you alone 99% of the time.

Remember that every time you sit on the bike you take your life, your wallet and your license in your own hands. Ride within your limits and if you don't want to get a ticket, follow the rules.

Ps. being polite and honest to cops helps, most of them are still partially human and they nearly always know when people are taking the piss ;)

my 10c

[mister.koz]

Oh and a cop told me to drill a hole in the top left of the l-plate and the number plate then attach in a way that it could be folded behind the number plate he didn't condone breaking the rules but he (and a few other cops i know) were pretty pissed at the 70km/h rule.

[cambridgedan]

Use it!
It is not the target that plenty claim it to be. The cost of not having it far outweighs the cost of having one.
Can you afford the $400...in multilples?

the cost of having one - possibly getting knocked off by someone who has to get in front of you, as appose to 400 hmm , thats tauranga tho els where may be different

[mister.koz]

the cost of having one - possibly getting knocked off by someone who has to get in front of you, as appose to 400 hmm , thats tauranga tho els where may be different

I reckon put it on and do 100, just look out for cops :)

[Sable]

The $400 does concern me, but not so much as the way cagers treat you. One day I got a free L-plate and decided to stick it on. In 2 hours I got cut off 3 times by 4 wheel drives, tailgated by trucks despite the fact I was doing 60km/h. A real nice one was having right of way at an intersection, going through before someone who wasn't giving way, and getting followed half way home. He was overtaking on the wrong side of the road to do it too. When I took it off things were suddenly okay again. I'll pay the $400 thanks.

[modboy]

I had an L plate on my vespa for about 2 hours - the time it took me to ride to the AA, get my restricted and get home.

I got stopped a few times without one - once a cop mentioned it, shouldn't you have an L plate?? I looked stupidly at the rear of my Vespa and said, I'm sure there was one on their yesterday. He let me go with a warning. The other times they never mentioned it. But yes - I hear they can ping you if they so desire.

I was always dealing with shit from cagers on the vespa, getting cut off at the last second (no way am I sitting behind a scooter), funny, since I've been riding the Thruxton (with the DB killer out of my Arrow system) most drivers seem to treat me with a bit more respect.

From timid scooter boy to hardcore hells angel type on a triumph - haha. perception is everything.