Vanity plates coming to a bumper near you

MONTREAL- It’s certainly a way to make a statement.

In Ontario and Vermont, vanity plates are a common sight, now Quebec will have them too. A small page in the tome of the provincial budget allowed for the addition of these custom plates and the possibilities are endless.

But, there could be a catch.

The Quebec government tried to introduce customized plates in 2014.

That plan was scrapped over concerns motorists would use English words or vulgar phrases.

“With Bill 101 I kind of agree,” said one motorist outside a SAAQ service outlet in Pointe-Claire. “It’ll probably reduce the number of plates out there.”

So far, there’s no restriction on language in this edition of the budget, so long as there’s no morally objectionable words.

The Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ), the province’s automobile insurance board, refused to comment on if that could change.

But would people want them anyways?

“It would be fun I guess,” said one man filling up his car, at a gas station.

“I don’t need it and it would cost a lot of money,” said another motorist.

“I guess if I really wanted it customized but I don’t think I would go out of my way to get one,” said a third.

The SAAQ issues and renews more than 6 million license plates every year.

The government estimates that vanity plates would bring in $6 million dollars by 2019.