Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Are the prices listed your wholesale prices?

The prices listed on our website are our wholesale prices. We are a wholesale manufacturer and do not offer any special pricing that is not currently listed on the website. Please contact our team to learn about subscribing to our newsletter to learn about any exciting new promotions that we offer.

Q: How many art proofs can I get before ordering?

Our art department is happy to provide up to three (3) free art proofs per order. Any additional artwork proofs will incur a $10.00 graphic artwork fee per additional proof.

Q: What does production time mean?

Production will start within one (1) business day of your approved and signed order documents and pre-payment being received by our staff. When your order does move into production, you will receive an e-mail from our processing department with a production status confirmation. Please note that production times can vary by 1-2 weeks from what is estimated in your confirmation e-mail during peak season. Production time will include the time that your item is being created in our factory. Shipping time within the continental United States will be 3-5 business days after production has been completed.

Q: What are my rush options?

We can offer a rush on a variety of our products. Please note that some rush options may increase the unit price and some rush options are a flat rate rush fee. Please inquire with our customer service staff before placing your order to see if we can meet your in-hands date. We are unable to guarantee any rushes without pre-approval from the production manager, so please call us as quickly as possible to inquire about being added to our rush schedule. Rush fees will apply to any rush order.

Q: How do I care for my products?

It is important to utilize only a mild detergent and low pressure when washing any vehicles with plate or frame products on it. We also recommend storing your products in a cool, dry environment because extreme heat or cold will cause your products to wear faster and could cause damage to imprint.

Q: What is the difference between your poly-ad license plate thicknesses?

We offer a variety of thicknesses on our poly-ad license plates. The plate itself is made from a thin plastic. We utilize polyethylene, which is a premium plastic material that will not turn yellow. The .015 mil is roughly as thick as a laminated flyer. The .020 mil is going to be slightly thicker and more comparable to laminated cardstock. Our .030 mil poly-ad license plate is going to be comparable in thickness to a credit or debit card. The .055 mil poly-ad plate is roughly as thick as two credit cards stacked on top of each other.

Q: What is the difference between full color and spot color printing processes?

The full color printing process can be utilized on a variety of our products, including the full color poly-ad license plate, full color laser frost acrylic license plate, full color embossed aluminum license plate, full color aluminum license frame, full color plastic license frame, chrome plated metal UV acrylic strip license frame, and a variety of our decal options. A full color printing process utilizes a CMYK color combination, similar to your color printer. We use state-of-the-art printing machines to facilitate high-detail artwork with numerous colors. This is a great option for a very detailed logo or any artwork that features color gradients. We are not able to guarantee an exact match on a PMS color with the full color process, as even the closest CMYK equivalent will differ slightly from a Pantone color.

The spot color printing process ensures that your imprint will be vibrant and bold. We can match your PMS color to get the closest match as possible to your logo. The spot color process utilizes a silkscreen method of printing. A mesh screen is created to paint over, which is how the silkscreen imprint is put onto a plate or frame product. Please keep in mind that some products do have PMS match fees for colors that we do not keep in stock.

Q: What is the difference between a raised plastic license frame and a silkscreen license frame?

Our raised plastic license plate frame is a 3-D injection molded frame product. We will create a mold to inject with plastic to create this product for you. Once the product is molded, we will then hot stamp your requested imprint color. The lettering is going to be raised and will really stand out on a moving vehicle. Because this is a molded product, there are some restrictions as far as colors touching. Colors must be separated by the actual plastic color of the frame. This frame option is a popular choice for car dealerships, schools, and other organizations. The minimum order quantity of the raised plastic license plate frame is 250 pieces. Standard production time on the raised plastic frame is 4-6 weeks with an upgraded paid rush option of 10-15 business days.

Our silkscreen plastic license plate frame is also plastic, but the imprint is printed flat on top of the frame. Silkscreen frames allow for more detail in the artwork, as colors can touch each other. We offer standard production of 3-4 weeks and quick production of 6-9 business days. We also offer lower minimum order quantities of 150 pieces on the quick production option of the silkscreen plastic license plate frame.

Q: What are the two chrome faced frame options?

Our classic chrome faced license frame comes with a recessed background and raised text. The standard option for this frame is a black frame with a chrome face, the recessed black panel, and raised chrome text.

Our chrome faced recessed frame starts off as a black frame with the added chrome face and the text or imprint is recessed from the chrome face. This gives an engraved look. There are not any imprint color options available on this frame, as the color of the text is the actual frame color below the chrome face.

There are non-standard upgrade options available on both the chrome faced and the chrome faced recessed frame, including premium color frames and a brushed chrome finish instead of the standard shiny chrome. We also offer a satin finish option for the chrome faced frame as well as a shiny gold face option. Pricing for these options will differ than the standard pricing listed on our website, so please inquire with one of our friendly customer service representatives for pricing.

Q: What is the difference between the chrome dipped frame and a chrome faced frame?

We offer a variety of chrome frame options. The chrome dipped frame typically starts off as a black plastic that is injection molded to create your frame. The frame is then fully submerged in an OEM chrome solution and dried to create the plasti-chrome license plate frame. There will not be any of the original black frame showing. Once the frame has been dipped in the chrome, we are then able to hot stamp the requested imprint color on top of it.

The chrome faced frames will start off as your requested color frame. The black frame is standard and there are premium frame color options available as an upgrade. A chrome foiling is then added to the face of the frame. The sides and back of the frame will remain your chosen frame color and the face of the frame will have the shiny chrome imprint.

Q: How will my order be shipping and how long will it take to get to me?

We ship the majority of our products via UPS Ground. Some of our silkscreen frames and our poly-ad license plates may ship via FedEx Ground. We can offer expedited shipping options. Please contact us for a quote on expedited shipping. Standard ground shipping will take 3-5 business days within the continental United States. Orders shipping to Canada can take an additional 3-5 business days for standard ground shipping.

Any international orders that will be shipping outside of the United States or Canada will require a freight forwarder, as we are only able to ship within North America.

Q: Why do I have to pay two shipping charges on my order?

License Plates and Frames has seven different office locations. To keep our production schedule running swiftly, we will typically produce your products at our different manufacturing facilities. If you order two items from us, they may ship out of two different locations and there will be two separate shipping charges incurred on your invoice for this reason.

Q: Why are you charging me a set-up charge or a mold charge?

Due to the custom nature of our products, we must set up artwork for every new order that comes through. On our custom molded products, we create a mold that will go through our machine to be filled with the plastic or metal material that constructs your promotional product. Our silkscreen products require set-up charges to set up the actual mesh screen utilized to print over. This is a very industry standard process and once the initial set-up charges have been paid, there will not be another full set-up charge for a re-order as long as the artwork stays the same.

The only product that does feature a re-order fee of any sort are our silkscreen plastic license plate frames, as we are unable to save the screen for any future re-orders. The re-order fee is reduced from the full set-up charge. Please inquire with our customer service staff for a quote on your re-order of our silkscreen frames.

Q: Why has a white underlay been suggested?

Any time that you print a color other than white onto a dark surface such as a black license plate or license plate frame, the color will end up appearing much darker than originally intended. For this reason, we recommend adding a white underlay. The white underlay does have an additional color imprint charge per piece and may also incur an additional set-up charge. When using a white underlay, we will first print your imprint exactly as shown on your artwork proof with white prior to printing the requested imprint color. This will make the process much more like printing on a white surface than a black surface. This process can be replicated and explained best by taking a red marker and drawing a circle onto a black sheet of paper. The red ink will not show up on the black paper. If you first draw that same circle with a white out pen and then proceed to re-draw the circle in the red marker, the red circle will then become visible and will be easily noticed on the black sheet of paper.

Q: What are overruns and underruns?

When manufacturing custom plastic or metal products, the machines can produce a total of 10% over or 10% under runs. We set our machines up to produce a certain amount over the intended order because not every piece in production will come out as intended. Typically, we end up scrapping several pieces per order, which can lead to under runs or an exact quantity amount. If more pieces turn out as intended, there can be up to 10% over runs on orders. For minimum quantities these overruns can go up to 20%. Any cost difference will be adjusted on the invoice and will be billed or credited using the billing information on file.

Q: Why is there an artwork fee on my invoice?

Our minimum artwork guidelines and requirements specify that on a full color license plate product, we can utilize a jpeg as long as it is 300 DPI and 6x12 in size. On any other product, we do require a vector file for the artwork you would like to utilize on your product. The vector file must be a true vector file with all fonts converted to outlines/curves. If low resolution artwork was sent over, we can vector it and if it will take longer than one (1) hour for our art department to recreate the logo in a vector format, we will contact you first to collect the vector fee as quoted by our lead graphic artist on staff. If the artwork takes under an hour to re-create, our team will re-create it for you and add a small artwork fee to your invoice prior to ordering.

Q: Do you offer any other products?

We offer a variety of other promotional products, including business cards, pens, decals, koozies, stickers, plastic and metal key tags, lanyards, imprinted cups or mugs, pencils, shoelaces, lapel pins, cufflinks, and much more! Please inquire with our friendly and knowledgeable staff to get a quote for any product that you are interested in ordering.