How To Request Review Of Decision For Refusal Of Personalized License Plate (Quebec)?

If you have applied for a personalized license plate for your vehicle with SAAQ, there is a possibility that the character combination you choose might get rejected for a variety of reasons.

Reasons For Rejection

SAAQ has mentioned on their website that they can reject combinations for the following reasons –

• Difficult to read character combinations
• Gives a false impression of being associated with law enforcement or government.
• Associated with a distinctive trademark
• Confusing character combinations
• Obscene or Derogatory language

Here is a copy of the email that I received after applying for my character combination –

You recently ordered a personalized license plate from the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec.

We wish to inform you that the character combination you chose has been refused, as it includes an expression or message that promotes the perpetuation of a criminal offense, which does not respect the conditions set out by law.

The acquisition fee you paid for your personalized license plate will be reimbursed to your credit card within 4 to 6 business days. If it is not possible to provide a refund directly to your credit card, you will be mailed a refund cheque.

SAAQ

I was quite surprised by this decision from SAAQ as my character combination did not have anything to do with what they were claiming. If you believe you have a similar case, here is what you will need to do.

How To Send Request For Review

You will need to send a letter to the following address requesting them to review their decision –

Direction des opérations centralisées
333, boulevard Jean-Lesage, N-3-22
Case postale 19600, succursale Terminus
Québec (Québec) G1K 8J6

Your letter should contain the following points –

1. What was your Order ID and what combination you applied for.
2. How did you come with the combination, Does it relate to you personally?
3. Mention that you do not believe it has any negative connotations.
4. Also, it would be good to mention that you do not have a criminal record.

Review Timeline

Once you submit the letter, it can take about 2-3 weeks to hear back from SAAQ regarding if your decision was successful or not. In my case, the character combination was accepted after review.

Here is the message I received from SAAQ –

We are pleased to inform you that the character combination you have chosen has been accepted. Your order has been sent to the manufacturer and you should receive your personalized license plate within 3 to 6 weeks.

SAAQ

Once you receive your plate, you are still required to activate it before placing it on your vehicle.