Personalised car number plates are the pride of their owners, but few would collect registrations spelling the names of their favourite vermin.

Unless, that is, they were the owner of a pest control firm like David Sankey.

The company director has paid more than £50,000 during the past ten years on plates which spell out the names of the creepy-crawlies and creatures his staff are sent to kill.

He owns nine personalised number plates so far, including M1 CE, L1 CES, RAT 5W, A3 FLY and ANT 54T.

But his favourite is the K11 RAT registration, because it looks like "kill rat" - which is precisely what his firm does.

The firm, D Sankey Pest Control Services, specialises in clearing out rats, mice, ants, cockroaches, fleas, flies, wasps, bees, rabbits, moles, woodworm, birds and almost any other pests from infested homes and businesses. His cars and vans are based at various offices across Sussex including Uckfield, Brighton, Hove and Worthing.

Sankey vans only have discreet markings as pest control vehicles, in order to avoid embarrassment when staff turn up at a client's house in view of prying neighbours, but the number plates subtly give the game away.

They have become such a hit with keen-eyed enthusiasts that staff are convinced the registrations have spawned an unofficial Sankey Spotter's Club whose members play "spot the Sankey van" games while out on the road.

Mr Sankey, who has run the firm for two decades, said: "I bought the first one ten years ago when I happened to see one for sale. It just caught my eye.

"Since then I have just bought them whenever I have had a chance.

"They are good advertisements for the business. Everybody knows us for the number plates. It's a discreet way of letting people know who we are.

"It creates a lot of laughs. All the staff have their own van with a different number plate."

Customers and staff have helped to build the collection by coming up with suggestions of registration plates or telling Mr Sankey when they spot an appropriate number plate for sale.

The staff are also big fans of the plates and love it when the joke dawns on people in the street.

Pest control surveyor Philip Bryant, who says working for the firm is the best job he has had, said: "It's a giggle. When you're driving and pull up at traffic lights, you can see people pointing out the plates.

"You see motorists in your rear view mirror and you can watch while it takes a few seconds to dawn on the driver. Then you see them pointing it out to their passengers. It makes people smile."