bash plates = protection against unwanted surprises
Keep 'em mate, besides, they also protect debris that may bounce up and hit your cooler hosing (among other things).
From a daily perspective - I would have had some serious damage without mine, useless road "repair" leaving a chasm (around 250mm deep, 1/2m long and almost the full width of the road) in a 100km/h zone that was lightly covered with loose road base - no signage.
I must have picked up about 3-4kg of the stuff and needed a wheel alignment, but that was it.