Guides · Checking pallets for markings
Checking plastic pallets for markings
Check every stack before you send a lot. Look at the corners, both long sides, the feet and the centre. Any name, logo or tag makes the pallet the owner's until you show otherwise.
Last reviewed November 12, 2026
Where to look
| Place | What you may find |
|---|---|
| Deck corners | A moulded or stamped name or logo |
| Long sides of the deck | Stencils or hot-stamped panels |
| Feet and runners | RFID panels, moulded codes |
| Centre of the deck | A raised panel or label |
| Underside | Serial or mould codes |
A walking order
One stack at a time
Start at the left stack. Check the top pallet, then the bottom pallet of each stack.
Four faces
Look at all four sides of the stack, not just the front.
Photograph what you find
Close photo of each mark. Photograph the tops of stacks you checked and found clean.
Mark the stack
Tape a note on each stack: clean, marked or unsure.
What a mark means
A pool name or RFID panel points to an owner. A resin identification code is not one of these: it is a number for the resin and does not name an owner or say the part is recyclable. If the mark is your own, see own-brand pallets. If it is someone else's, see pool-marked pallets.
A line the desk keeps
The desk will not help remove, cover or hide a mark. If you cannot read a worn one, leave it, photograph it, and say you are unsure.
The form fields this guide fills
- Branding
- Message
How this guide ends
SOLD
Stacks you checked and found clean.
RETURN
Stacks with any mark, tag or panel.
SCRAP
Broken stacks, checked for marks like the rest.
Can I sell pooled pallets with another company's name on them?
No. Pooled pallets are not the holder's to sell.
What if a mark is worn?
Photograph it and choose not sure in the form. The desk treats it as a flag.
Words you will meet
- Lip
- Raised edge on the deck, or an optional soft lip, that keeps the load in place.
- Profile extrusion
- Pushing resin through a die to make long shapes that form pallet parts.
- Resin identification code
- Number on a plastic part for the resin, which does not itself say whether it is recyclable.
- Picture frame
- A raised rim around the deck edge that keeps cartons from sliding off.
- RFID
- Radio tag moulded or fixed into a pallet so it can be tracked.
- Creep
- Slow bending of plastic under a heavy load held for a long time.
- Injection moulding
- Pallet made by forcing molten resin into a mould at high pressure.
- Rotational moulding
- Resin heated in a rotating mould to make a hollow jointless part.
- Closed deck
- Solid top deck with no gaps; keeps small items from falling through.
- Runners
- Bottom rails that touch the floor or rack and carry the load.
- 4-way entry
- Forks or a jack can enter from all four sides.
- Nest increment
- How much height each extra nested pallet adds to a stack.
- Structural foam
- Low-pressure moulding where a blowing agent expands the resin in the mould.
- Compression moulding
- Moulding by pressing resin in a closed mould; one of six processes in use.
- HDPE
- High-density polyethylene, resin code 2. The most common resin in plastic pallets; tough and moisture resistant.
- Open deck
- Top deck with gaps between slats or ribs; lighter and drains.
Who asks, and what they need
- Chemical and drum shippers
- 48 x 48 and 45 x 45 pallets for drums and bags; chemical resistance.
- Export shippers
- Light or low-cost one-way pallets with no ISPM 15 treatment; Euro 1200 x 800 and 1200 x 1000 sizes.
- Retailers that collect pooled or one-way pallets
- Stacks of marked and unmarked pallets left by suppliers; need to know which can be sold and which belong to a pool.
What the sources say
- California AB 1760 (2022) lets recyclers take possession of stray proprietary pallets if the owner cannot be identified or fails to retrieve them in time, with a 35-day period before they can be declared abandoned. (palletenterprise.com)
- CHEP USA sued two California recyclers over CHEP-marked pallets they would not return; a Los Angeles court granted CHEP's motion to retrieve pallets in one case (article dated February 1, 2024). (palletenterprise.com)
- Only pallets designed for unsupported racking carry a racking rating. (nelsoncompany.com)
- Pallet capacities are issued by the manufacturer from calculation and lab or field tests, and assume an evenly distributed load. (nelsoncompany.com)
- Freezing can make some pallet materials brittle and reduce performance. (nelsoncompany.com)
- About 500 million pallets are made each year as of 2020, with about 2 billion in use in the US. (en.wikipedia.org)
- Resin identification codes do not indicate whether a product is recyclable; ASTM D7611 governs the coding. (en.wikipedia.org)
- Nestable pallets can cut empty-pallet storage space by up to 75 percent. (blog.containerexchanger.com)
- In 2011 a Quebec court ruled that CHEP's identified blue pallets belong to CHEP and cannot be sold. (palletenterprise.com)
- USDA NASS counted 3.99 billion cubic feet of gross refrigerated warehouse capacity in the US on October 1, 2025, with usable capacity of 3.25 billion cubic feet (82 percent of gross). (esmis.nal.usda.gov)
- USDA NASS counted 931 refrigerated warehouses on October 1, 2025: 476 public and 455 private or semiprivate. Public warehouses held 2.46 billion gross cubic feet, 62 percent of the total. (esmis.nal.usda.gov)
- Pennsylvania had 228 million cubic feet and New Jersey 137 million of gross refrigerated warehouse space on October 1, 2025 (USDA NASS). (esmis.nal.usda.gov)
- Census Bureau: seasonally adjusted e-commerce sales were $340.2 billion, 17.1 percent of total retail sales, in the second quarter of 2026 (released August 18, 2026). (census.gov)
- Counties with the most private meat and poultry processing jobs (NAICS 3116) in 2025, BLS QCEW, counties with disclosed data only: Hall County, Georgia (11,123), Cook County, Illinois (8,367), Sussex County, Delaware (8,212), Marshall County, Alabama (7,387), Fresno County, California (6,499), Douglas County, Nebraska (6,452). (data.bls.gov)
- Counties with the most private pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing jobs (NAICS 3254) in 2025, BLS QCEW, counties with disclosed data only: Lake County, Illinois (16,883), Marion County, Indiana (16,292), Montgomery County, Pennsylvania (11,878), Suffolk County, New York (10,760), Los Angeles County, California (8,300), San Diego County, California (8,028). (data.bls.gov)
- Counties with the most private motor vehicle manufacturing jobs (NAICS 3361) in 2025, BLS QCEW, counties with disclosed data only: Wayne County, Michigan (24,188), Bexar County, Texas (6,165), Cook County, Illinois (5,473), Eaton County, Michigan (4,432), Oakland County, Michigan (735), Los Angeles County, California (643). (data.bls.gov)
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Size, count, grade, branding and ZIP. Photos help, and you can reply to the first answer with them. This site states no price or pickup date.