Chinese use fake license plates to avoid speeding tickets

Using tactics that would make any TV crime boss proud, Chinese drivers are using electrically-operated license plate devices that either cover up the legitimate plate or swap out the plate for a fake one. The driver can activate the device whenever a speed camera is near from the comfort of the car's cabin - while driving.

A small industry supporting the speeders has emerged, with companies selling the apparatus for as little as $115 for the simple license plate blocking device. The system that allows users to swap numbers on-the-fly costs at least double that amount, reports Yahoo! News.

The problem of drivers circumventing speed cameras is not a new one - in China or anywhere else in the world - but the Chinese seem to have taken to the task with particular zeal. Some motorists have gone so far as to convert their entire vehicles to mimic those of the People's Liberation Army, which gives them preferential treatment on the nation's roads.

The simulated military transports have also been used for inspection-free travel, which allows their drivers to effectively smuggle contraband.