It will depend upon your state's inspection process however in many states not having a license plate light will cause you to fail inspection. This light is needed because at night law enforcement needs to see your license plate in case they want to run it or just need to make sure the plate is valid.
Since state safety inspection processes and criteria differ you would need to check with an inspection station that does state safety inspections to see if in your state not having a license plate light (or a non-functioning one) would cause you to fail the inspection.
For instance in Texas for the safety inspection every passenger car is checked for proof of financial responsibility and inspected for:
- Horn
- Windshield Wipers
- Mirror
- Steering
- Seat Belts
- Brakes (system) (Parking - beginning with 1960 models)
- Tires
- Wheel Assembly
- Exhaust System
- Exhaust Emission System (beginning with 1968 models)
- Beam Indicator (beginning with 1948 models)
- Tail Lamps (2); (1) if 1959 model or earlier
- Stop Lamps (2); (1) if 1959 model or earlier
- License Plate Lamp (1)
- Rear Red Reflectors (2)
- Turn Signal Lamps (beginning with 1960 models)
- Head Lamps (2)
- Motor, Serial, or Vehicle Identification Number
- 1988 & newer - inspect for window tinting or coating
- Gas caps on vehicles 2 - 24 model years old.
[Let CarInsurance.com help you find affordable auto insurance now.] The TX license plate inspection/rejection criteria can be viewed at the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (DPS) site.
In Delaware a license plate light is required to pass inspection. As it is in New York that states all lighting must be of an approved type and inspected for operation, proper mounting, and broken or missing lenses. In Missouri you must have your vehicle must have a white light shining on the rear license plate so the plate can be seen from 50 feet in order to pass the state's safety inspection.
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As you can see in most all states that have safety inspections a license plate light is required and must be properly working in order for you to pass and not fail your inspection. So check with an inspection station in your state to find out what is checked as part of the inspection process, likely the license plate light is one of the items on the inspection list. Your state's Department of Motor Vehicles may also have a list of all the equipment that is checked as part of the inspection and what the criteria is to pass or fail.
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