Law enforcement personnel in New York examine a license plate during a multi-agency operation at the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge in March 2024. The operation marked the launch of a new city-state task force aimed at identifying and removing “ghost cars” — vehicles that evade detection by traffic cameras and toll readers due to forged or altered license plates — from New York City streets. (Courtesy of Marc A. Hermann | Metropolitan Transportation Authority)
State and local legislators in Tennessee and Pennsylvania are cracking down on the use of “license plate flippers,” devices that allow drivers to obscure or conceal their license plates at the press of a button.
License plate flippers are commonly used for aesthetic purposes at auto shows, where they allow drivers to switch between custom or decorative plates. But across the country, thousands of drivers also flip or cover their license plates to evade detection — whether by law enforcement, toll systems or automated speed cameras.
Texas and Washington explicitly banned the devices in 2013. Nonetheless, it’s generally illegal across the United States to alter or obstruct a license plate, no matter the method.