Could you maybe look into why the importation of such (licence-plate) covers is not banned?


Auntie’s answer: This question was asked in a comment on a column that ran in January, “Stop obscuring licence plates”. They say timing is everything, so I want to point out that the column in question is from January this year. (And, please bear with me because I will be offering a related, though very partial, answer for you farther down.)

Ask Auntie, CNS Local Life, Caymanian status

I sent the question to the Department of Vehicle and Drivers’ Licensing (DVDL), and an official answered me in less than an hour. And, no your eyes are not deceiving you. In fact, I cannot say enough good things about how responsive that department has been to the many questions asked of them over the three-plus years this column has existed.

On the flip side, the Customs Department continues its lack of transparency (sort of like those suspicious licence plates). To be precise, almost two months and several emails later, I did not get so much as “I received your email and will respond in due course” from Customs. Even if they never actually answered the question, a return email at least indicates there is someone at the department receiving my queries.

I will note that Customs is not the only government entity that consistently ignores my attempts at getting information, but they are possibly the least helpful. It seems that some government departments don’t seem to understand the simple, yet elegant, concept of the “public’s right to know”. At the very least, it just looks bad for a public servant not to answer a question posed to them.

I like to think that, in my only little way, I provide a service both for my readers and the government agencies who only have to respond to me and, job done, the information gets disseminated without anyone leaving their desk. But, I will keep making the attempt because I am nothing if not stubborn.

Having that said, here is that partial answer I promised. The ever-helpful DVDL official explained that the Traffic Law does address the issue of obscuring licence plates. And Section 5(3) of The Traffic Regulations (2017 Revision) says that anyone who does something to affect the legibility of a registration plate “commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine of three hundred dollars or to imprisonment for a term of six months, or to both”.

The official added, “If, and when, a customer shows up at DVDL with those covers on, we have them removed before proceeding with inspecting the vehicle.” I realise that is not the most satisfactory solution but it’s something.

But I still cannot tell you why the importation of these offending covers is not banned or what, if any, policy on them exists over at Customs.

The law mentioned above can be found on the CNS Library

Send questions to auntie@caymannewsservice.com