Vehicle Lettering & Decals by Industry

What every service vehicle needs

The stoplight test: a driver behind your van at a red light has a few seconds, and they need to answer three questions. What do you do, who are you, and how do they reach you. Everything on the vehicle serves one of those three. The trade name goes biggest, because a van that says PLUMBING gets the plumbing call and a van with a clever name gets nothing. The company name goes second. The phone number goes on every side that faces a street, in a plain block font, large enough to read from across that street. Services get one line, four or five of them, chosen for the work you want more of. Trust lines (licensed, insured, years in business) are small and only say what is true. A review or booking QR on the rear turns a parked vehicle into an appointment.

Then there is the DOT question. name and USDOT number on both sides of the power unit from 10,001 lbs (49 CFR 390.21T(b)(2)); other triggers in the federal box below. Weight, not the kind of business, decides it: a pickup pulling a loaded trailer, a box truck, a chip truck or a truck-mount van can cross the line while a lettered sedan never will. Each trade page below says how that trade's typical rig stacks up, and the free checker runs your own vehicle against the federal rule and your state's.

Some trades have their own rules on top: several states tell pest control, plumbing, HVAC and electrical companies exactly what the license number on the truck must look like. Where we have read the rule in the state's own statute or regulation, the trade page shows it with the citation. Our work van lettering guide covers the layout basics that apply to every trade.

Mobile services

Home services

Transport

Not sure what your vehicle legally needs?

Answer 7 questions and the checker lists the required markings for your truck, with the rule behind each one.