Displaying all of your essential USDOT information outside of your motor unit is one of the most important things to have on your truck. A lot of new truckers overlook this and face consequences later on.

We always recommend displaying all of your lettering using a strong bold font that is at least 2 inches in height (this is the minimum requirement set by the FMCSA). Your font must be visible from at least 50 feet and it must contrast with the color of your vehicle.

Legally, you are required to display your USDOT number, Company or Business Name and the location of which you are doing business out of. You must display the location since there might be a lot of businesses with your business name. This helps identify your business a lot easier.

We recommend displaying your company name then underneath the location which you are doing business out of. Under that you can display your USDOT number. If you are a super trucker and doing business across country, we recommend displaying your lettering like this.

Company Name, Location, USDOT, MC, CA, KYU, TXDOT, GVW & VIN. Again, this is our recommendation to make sure you cover all of your basics.

Why do you need to display all of this information? It makes it easier for authorities to pull up and input all of your information and helps identify you whenever you pass weight scales. The most important thing for displaying all of your information correctly is for when commercial vehicles are in crash or accidents. Authorities will be able to pull up the safety record of business and take action.

In the example below, a drunk driver driving a tow truck crashed into multiple vehicles. The first thing authorities did was capture the USDOT & CA number on the side of the truck to identify the business & driver. This is the importance of displaying all of your information correctly.