(a) No person shall operate or park, nor shall an owner knowingly permit to be operated or parked upon any street or highway any vehicle required to be registered unless there is attached thereto and displayed thereon or is in the possession of the operator when and as required by this Traffic Code, a valid registration card and registration plate or plates issued therefor by the Department of Motor Vehicles for the current registration year, except as otherwise expressly permitted in W.Va. Code Ch. 17-A.
(b) In the event that the registration plate or plates originally issued are lost, destroyed or stolen, a temporary facsimile of the plate or plates, showing the number of the same, may be attached to the vehicle by the owner for a period of not more than 15 days, or until a new plate or plates are issued by the Department whichever is earlier; provided that, no such facsimile shall be used and no such vehicle shall be driven upon the streets or highways of the municipality until the owner has notified in writing the Department of Public Safety of the loss of such registration plate or plates.
(W.Va. Code § 17A-9-2)