Delivery Options & Shipping Costs

Every Utopia Plates order is sent with Royal Mail, and you choose the service at checkout. Number plate orders of £39.99 or more get free tracked delivery, accessories ship free, and if you need your number plates by a set time there's a guaranteed next-day option too. Here's exactly what each service offers, so you can pick the right one.

Delivery options at a glance

Royal Mail Tracked 48 – FREE on number plate orders of £39.99 or more. Aims to deliver within 2–3 working days of dispatch.
Royal Mail Tracked 24 – paid upgrade. Aims to deliver the next working day after dispatch (not guaranteed).
Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed – paid upgrade. Guaranteed next working day delivery, signed for on arrival.
Royal Mail Second Class – FREE on accessories-only orders. Usually 2–3 working days.
Local collection – pick up from our Durham store (selected North East postcodes).

Prices for paid services are shown in your basket and at checkout before you pay.

Free Tracked 48 delivery on number plates

Every number plate order of £39.99 or more ships free with Royal Mail Tracked 48 – that covers every pair of 3D Gel plates, 4D number plates and our other raised-letter styles. Tracked 48 aims to deliver within 2 to 3 working days of dispatch and is fully tracked from our workshop to your door, with confirmation when it's delivered.

Ordering standard printed plates or just under £39.99? Add a fixing kit or other accessory to take your order to £39.99 and your delivery is free. Otherwise, choose a paid service at checkout.

Royal Mail Tracked 24: next working day aim

Tracked 24 is our faster tracked upgrade. Royal Mail aims to deliver it the next working day after dispatch, and most parcels arrive on time. It is a delivery aim rather than a guarantee, though, so occasionally a parcel can take an extra day. If your plates absolutely have to arrive on a specific day – for an MOT, a sale or a car collection – choose Special Delivery Guaranteed instead.

Special Delivery Guaranteed: guaranteed next day delivery

Special Delivery Guaranteed is the only Royal Mail service with a guaranteed next working day delivery time. It's fully tracked, needs a signature on arrival and carries higher compensation cover than the standard tracked services, making it the best choice for urgent orders and high-value items.

Free Second Class delivery on accessories

Orders containing only accessories – such as fixing kits and number plate accessories – are sent free with Royal Mail Second Class, which usually arrives within 2 to 3 working days. If your order also contains number plates, everything travels together on the plate service you choose.

Private registrations and gift certificates

When you buy a private registration, we post your V750 Certificate of Entitlement – along with any number plates and accessories on the order – the same day it reaches us from the DVLA, using the delivery service you chose at checkout. If you'd like us to handle the paperwork too, our Done-For-You transfer service takes care of assigning the registration to your vehicle.

Buying a private plate as a present? Our private plate presentation certificate is normally sent out within 24 hours by Royal Mail Tracked 24, so you have something to give before the V750 certificate arrives.

When will my number plates be dispatched?

All of our plates are made in-house at our Durham workshop to BS AU 145e. As a registered number plate supplier, we can only make road-legal plates once we've checked your proof of identity, address and entitlement to the registration – see our list of valid documents to get everything ready and avoid delays. Delivery times for every service are counted from the day your order is dispatched, not the day it's placed.

Good to know

Royal Mail delivery aims are in working days, so there are no deliveries on Sundays or bank holidays.
Royal Mail doesn't set a delivery aim for Tracked services to some postcodes, including parts of the Scottish Highlands and Islands, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands, so please allow a little longer.
Tracked 24, Tracked 48 and Special Delivery orders all come with a Royal Mail tracking number so you can follow your parcel.

Collect from our Durham store

Local to the North East? Choose local collection at checkout and pick your order up from our workshop at Dragonville Industrial Park, Durham, DH1 2XJ. Need plates today? Our same day number plates walk-in service makes them while you wait.

Questions about your delivery?

Read our FAQs, check our returns policy or contact our team – we're happy to help. Ready to order? Build your number plates with our live 3D preview or search private plates.