not necessarily true! i had a dating cert from Suzuki, they registered my bike with a 77 "R" plate, then took it away and gave me a "Q" after 3 months of me riding around on it FFS.
you will get a different answer EVERY TIME you phone them, if it is a different person on a different desk.
i gave up and accepted my "Q" plate after 6 months of trying, as it got me on the road and not sat in the shed waiting on them to fuck me around any more