Oversize Load Equipment Checklist: Flags, Banners, Lights

Whitney S. Johnson · CEO of RouteAll · 4 years running height pole, mostly east coast, escorting data center equipment. · 8 Min Read · Updated October 31, 2026

Material corrections reviewed October 23, 2026 against the published federal flag rule, Rhode Island’s active rule, Florida’s adopted rule and Utah’s current rule effective March 16, 2026. Oklahoma and South Dakota examples retain their September 8 source review.

Use the permit to check warning flags, load banners and lights before departure. Their triggers, placement and specifications differ by jurisdiction and load. The federal projecting-load rule sets an 18-inch flag minimum where it applies, but that does not replace state requirements or the issued permit’s equipment conditions.

This checklist helps you prepare the equipment review. It is not a universal shopping list or a substitute for the conditions attached to the actual move.

Before purchasing, list the states and the actual load dimensions. Check sign size, letter height and stroke separately, then flag placement and lighting. Florida’s 12-inch load-sign lettering demonstrates why a familiar 10-inch-letter banner cannot be treated as a universal solution.

Lights are the piece that varies most, and the permit is where you read the answer.

What size flags do you need?

Where 49 CFR 393.87 applies, flags must be red or fluorescent orange and at least 18 inches square. The rule’s projection trigger is more than 4 inches beyond a side or more than 4 feet beyond the rear. State rules can also require flags for an overwidth load that has no such projection.

The federal rule also sets how many flags go on a projection. One flag if the end of the projection is two feet wide or less, two flags if it is wider.

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Where do the flags go?

On the extremities of the load, meaning the widest and rearmost points. That is often past the corners of the trailer itself, so measure the load and not the deck. South Dakota goes further and flags all four corners of the vehicle once it passes 8 feet 6 inches wide.

• Four inches of side projection triggers federal flags, which is less than most drivers expect.
• Four feet of rear projection triggers them as well.
• Utah overhang flags: current R909-2-17 applies when front overhang exceeds 3 feet or rear overhang exceeds 4 feet; check its non-divisible-load scope and LCV exception.
• Clean and untorn is a current Utah requirement: flags must not be faded or worn out and must be attached to wave freely.

Banners and signs

Banner size, letter height and when a sign is required differ by state, so they live on one page: Oversize Load Sign & Banner Requirements by State. Check it, then your permit, before you buy or mount a banner.

What lights are required?

Check lighting independently from banners and flags. Rhode Island’s base oversize rule calls for low beams and says no additional special load-vehicle lighting is required under that provision. This does not cancel ordinary vehicle lighting, overhang requirements or added permit conditions. Utah’s current lighting provisions are indexed under R909-2-14.

• Base vehicle lights: keep the required headlamps, lamps and reflectors operational.
• Utah non-daylight lighting: current R909-2-14 requires front amber marking for overhang over 3 feet and rear red clearance lights for overhang over 4 feet, alongside its other lighting provisions.
• Utah’s long overhang: under the non-daylight lighting provision, overhang over 20 feet requires a rotating or flashing beacon visible from at least 500 feet, mounted at least 4 feet high.
• Escort lights: treat escort-vehicle requirements separately from those for the loaded combination.

Amber warns from the front and sides, red from the rear. That convention holds in the rules above, but you must confirm the color and count on the permit for your state. How to read a TxDMV oversize permit shows where one state prints its conditions.

The escort's lighting is a separate rule set. The pilot car requirements by state guide covers the escort side.

Which Oversize Load Accessories Should You Check Before Departure?

Make the equipment list after checking every jurisdiction and permit. Record the required specifications, then inspect what is actually on the truck and escorts. A common flag size or a familiar banner does not establish that its color, lettering, placement or condition meets the move’s requirements.

Use this order to organize the inspection:

1. Flags. Check the required count, size, color and placement for the load’s corners and projections. The federal projecting-load minimum does not replace state rules.
2. Banners. Match the required count, dimensions, lettering, stroke, color, visibility and mounting for every state.
3. Lights. Confirm the move’s required warning lights and any projection lamps; a generic beacon is not a complete lighting plan.
4. Spare flags. Replace damaged, faded or unsuitable flags and check the current state condition requirements.

RouteAll reads the permit you upload and drives the route it names, so the equipment conditions printed on that permit travel with the route. It does not inspect your rig.

Only the permit and the state rule decide what you must hang on the load.

Before you roll

Read the permit’s equipment conditions, compare the current rules for every jurisdiction, and inspect the actual rig. Verify the complete sign specification and the flags and lights separately. Do not use this checklist to waive an instruction that applies to your load.

Common questions

Further reading

Sources

• 49 CFR 393.87, warning flags on projecting loads.
• Oklahoma, OAC 730:50-5-15, "Oversize Load" sign and warning flags.
• Rhode Island, 290-RICR-40-00-1.5, safety requirements for nondivisible permits.
• South Dakota, ARSD 70:03:01:14, warning flags required for oversize movement.
• Utah, Current Utah R909-2: signing and flags are now under R909-2-17, and travel/lighting under R909-2-14. The current rule, effective March 16, 2026, was read for this correction.
• Florida, 14-26.012, current adopted rule: 12-inch lettering on required load signs.

RouteAll reads the permit you provide. It does not issue permits or guarantee compliance. The driver remains responsible for the load. Only four states were verified for this guide; rules change, so verify against the permit and the issuing state before every move.