Skip to main content

A licence plate adorns the back of The LEGOLAND Florida edition Ford Explorer.M. SPENCER GREEN/The Associated Press

Ah, vanity licence plates. That short message or acronym on a car bumper that tells the world all about you in several characters or less.

But if you're planning to buy vanity plates as a gift for yourself or someone else this holiday season, choose that message wisely.

The Georgia Straight reports that the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia recently released a list of 2000 vanity licence plates they've rejected in recent years.

The list was obtained by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation's Jordan Bateman, who filed an access-to-information request to the ICBC, and naturally the offensive plates were conveniently categorized.

In the "offensive" category, it's hard to believe two applicants requested plates that said DEVIL and BIGPIG, but they did and they were turned down.

In more obviously offensive pitches, motorists were turned down for requesting FU, F U, FUBAR and, incredibly, KKK.

Also deemed offensive: DAM and BAD ASS.

Moving a notch lower down the scale, several plates were relegated to the "not in good taste" category. That would be STOLEN, LARDAS, LMAO, LUCIFR and GUNNUT.

As a government agency, the ICBC naturally doesn't condone street racing, which is presumably the reason they turned down people requesting RACEM, FSTBAK, FRMLA1, DRG RACE, 2FSTFU and FAST4U.

And did you know that political messages were forbidden from being displayed on vanity plates in B.C.? This explains why applications were rejected for plates reading ITALIA, MAU MAU, 9ELEVEN, SO-CRDS and, weirdly, CANADA.

And finally, we have the category of "unacceptable combination," in which some wiseacres attempt to get around the vanity plate restrictions by merging two concepts.

It's almost understandable why a person with the surname Singh might order a vanity plate reading ISINGH (they were turned down), but why would anyone want a vanity plate declaring themselves as DR.MEAT?

Stay classy, British Columbia.

Interact with The Globe