Quebec personalized licence plates: website crashes on first day

MONTREAL — Quebecers hoping to purchase personalized licence plates Friday were out of luck after sections of the province’s automobile insurance board website crashed.

The technical glitch occurred about one hour after the site opened.

Board spokesman Mario Vaillancourt says he believes the problems were caused by the high number of people wanting to use the site at the same time.

Service is expected to resume Monday.

The Quebec government announced earlier this month that personalized plates would be available for purchase online as of Friday.

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Transport Minister Andre Fortin said at the time the message on the plates — a combination of numbers and letters ranging between two and seven characters — will have to be respectful and tasteful.

They will sell for $250 and renewal will cost drivers $34.50, which falls within the range charged elsewhere in Canada.

Most Canadian jurisdictions offer personalized plates with costs ranging from around $100 to about $340, according to publicly available information. It is also a widely available option in the United States.

The Canadian Press

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