Peeling plates: Why thousands of licence plates need to be fixed

Thousands of vehicles in Newfoundland and Labrador are carrying peeling licence plates, but the provincial government says it won't end up costing drivers or the province to replace them.

"The manufacturer acknowledged the problem andwill honoura five-year warranty on their product while they are working on a longer-term solution," a spokesperson for Service NL told CBC News in an email.

The problem was identified two years ago, and since then the province has swapped out thousands of licence plates.

The department is encouraging drivers to check for signs of peeling on their plates. If the paint is coming off, drivers should go to a Service NL office to get a replacement.

• Service Nova Scotia warns drivers to replace unreadable licence plates

In 2015, 4,335 defective plates were returned and replaced.

Last year, another5,109 were swapped out.

Service NL points out that accounts for only 0.5 per centof all the vehicles on the road.

"While this does represent an increase in the number of replacement plates issued, Service NL has not needed to order additional stock to meet the demand," the department said.

Service NL won't charge the usual $30 fee to have the plates replaced if they areunder five years old.

Newfoundland and Labrador isn't the only province facing this problem.Nova Scotia has a similar problem with its licence plates and is offering a similar replacement.