Tony Novis has a personalised number plate and its quirky little message has only ever brought him good vibes.
So Novis was recently left confused, and saddened, when told it might be the end of the road for his very personal plate.
What does it say? It says OM. It says OM because those two letters – together – have great meaning for Novis.
Novis has lived – and loved – the peace and the slower pace of life on Waiheke Island for the past 13 years.
He and his partner Dinja run a crystal import business, enjoy yoga, meditating and growing organic veggies.
And this plate, this OM, really sums up his serene spirit.
He’s had the plate for a long time - 37 years in fact - and never a complaint, until now.
A recent phone call from Waka Kotahi had Novis reminding himself to – gulp – keep taking those long, deep breaths.
“I couldn't believe when I heard, they said ‘someone’s made a complaint’.”
Yes, dear readers, this very number plate, which had already outlived five of Novis' cars including his grandfather’s Borgward Isabella, was now under threat.
The complaint was that OM was deemed confusing and could be read differently if it was affixed upside down.
So … WO. Or perhaps - woah! And even - woe!
Waka Kotahi wanted a written explanation of its meaning, and what, in particular, OM meant to Novis. Easy.
“To me it just means the universe, in particular the underlying vibration of the universe.”
Back in 1987 Novis paid around $375 for it. Of course now, it’s likely to be worth a whole lot more.
We’ll leave Novis for now, to experience a vibration of a different kind – with Zac James, who is driving around the big smoke of Tāmaki Makaurau in his ute.
James' number plate got the same unwanted attention from Waka Kotahi. His offending message reads NUTZAC, and he got it for his 16th birthday.
Why NUTZAC? The Zac part is obvious, and the Nut part comes from an earlier plate his dad’s father bought for his dad – that plate said NUTA.
James' dad then combined the two ideas into one numberplate - NUTZAC.
When Waka Kotahi asked what the number plate meant – James could rightly say all above board, no sexual content, just a piece of family history that they wanted to continue.
Apparently though, both Novis and James' explanations fell short. Waka Kotahi requested both to surrender their plates, with the offer to redesign new ones free of charge.
Plates are designed and purchased on the KiwiPlates website, Waka Kotahi's delegated authority to sell plates.
When we visited the website with James' stepmum Toni, she showed us there were some more graphic or more offensive number plates available.
“I don't quite know how it gets through,” said Toni.
You don't need too much creative flair to rustle up a potentially offensive personalised plate, and Toni showed us we can then just hit the button, and pay – in this case - $1000. Done.
“Yeah,” said Toni, “to have it potentially taken off me”.
But, the day before Tony was meant to hand in his OM plate, a letter from Waka Kotahi told him this was now a bigger issue and they’re looking into it further for a couple of months.
We asked them - why the change of heart? Waka Kotahi didn't answer that, but said when it gets a complaint, the potential to be offensive is weighed up alongside freedom of expression.
It says personalised plates with objectionable wording can be excluded, and so can combos that can be confusing, or, if turned upside down, can look like a new plate.
Once the review is complete Waka Kotahi will let Novis and James know whether their plates can be kept, or need to be surrendered, or have a message printed on or around the plate.
And while OM and NUTZAC appear to come from different cosmic universes, the two owners still face the same car conundrum.
How long do they think they can keep their plates?
“Forever,” said James. “Hopefully hand it down to my kids eventually.”
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