Leeds Council sells 120-year-old ‘U1’ number plate for £750,000
A historic number plate on the Lord Mayor’s official vehicle is to be sold to the highest bidder for £750,000.
Leeds City Council said it chose a buyer for the plate, which it has owned for more than 120 years, after considering two offers.
A sale of the civic plate, which bears the number “U1”, will help raise funds for the council, which must save more than £100m this financial year.
It is said to be the first car registration plate bought in Leeds after the Motor Car Act was passed in 1903.
Council bosses officially put it up for sale via private dealers in September.
A council report said a rejected bid from a second potential buyer would have raised £673,000.
It said: “The disposal of the cherished plate would bring an end to an association that the council has had with “U1” for around 120 years.
“The net proceeds of the disposal will contribute positively to the substantial long standing and ongoing financial challenge that the council is facing.
”While the second bidder had a local Leeds connection, it could not be guaranteed the plate would stay in the city”, the report said.
Due diligence checks were carried out on the first bidder and the transaction could be completed immediately.
The “U1” plate would be replaced with a less valuable one bearing the number “L6EDS”.
The report said: “The council has a certificate of entitlement for the registration plate “L6EDS” which was purchased some time ago.
”The sale of the U1 plate carried a risk of it being re-sold at a “significantly elevated value”, the report said.
But it said: “Is considered this risk has been mitigated as far as possible through the use of the private dealer, however it is important to be clear that they cannot be eliminated.”