A caravan's compliance plate carries the ratings for that exact van as it was approved. Anything fitted later adds to what the van weighs empty. The plate shows ATM (Aggregate Trailer Mass), GTM (Gross Trailer Mass), tare and the VIN (vehicle identification number). Many plates show the build date too.
It is a small metal or foil plate, riveted or bonded on. Below are the common places to look, a field-by-field read of the van's plate, and where a car's towing figures are kept.
The caravan's plate carries the weights
The van's plate shows its Aggregate Trailer Mass (ATM), its Gross Trailer Mass (GTM) and, on current builds, its tare. The car's towing figures are in the owner's manual. The towbar's label shows the towbar's own rating.
| The figure | Where it lives |
|---|---|
| ATM, GTM and Tare | The van's plate. Required on current builds; some older vans print Tare on a separate weight label. |
| Braked towing capacity | The car's owner's manual, towing section. The towbar's label shows its own rating, and towbars made for passenger cars since 1 January 1992 must carry one. The lowest applies. |
| GVM (Gross Vehicle Mass) | The owner's manual, specifications section. |
| GCM (Gross Combination Mass) | The owner's manual, towing section. |
Tyre sizes and pressures live on their own label, the tyre placard, on the car and on the van.
Where is the compliance plate on your car or caravan?
Manufacturers choose where the plate goes, and the choice changes between models and between build years of the same model. These are the places worth checking first, and they cover most vehicles on Australian roads.
On a caravan or trailer
- On the drawbar, near the coupling and the jockey wheel
- Inside the door frame, on the jamb or on the door itself
- On the front wall of the van, at the A-frame end
- Inside a front boot or tunnel boot, on the bulkhead
Bigger vans often carry more than one label. Look for the ID plate with the mass ratings, a separate tyre placard and sometimes a weight label with the Tare figure. Take a photo of each while you are down there.
On a car, ute or 4WD
- The driver's door jamb, or on the edge of the door itself
- Under the bonnet, on the firewall or a strut tower
- The passenger door jamb or the B-pillar between the doors
- On the floor next to the driver's seat, under a plastic cover, on some models
The tyre placard is usually a separate label and often sits in the driver's door jamb or the fuel filler flap. On a ute, check the engine bay as well as both door jambs. A car approved under the newer rules, from 1 July 2021, may carry only a make and VIN label. Use the owner's manual for its weights.
For your exact vehicle, the manual wins
Plate location is a manufacturer decision, and it changes with the model, the body style and the build year. The owner's manual or handbook names the spot for your vehicle, and a dealer's service department will point at it in seconds over the phone.
Reading a caravan plate, field by field
Layouts differ between makers. Each field below says what the number is and what to do with it. Ball weight and axle ratings sit off the plate.
VIN
A 17-character identifier unique to that one caravan, matching the number stamped or laser-etched into the chassis and printed on the registration papers.
What you do with itCheck all three read the same before you pay for a used van, then run the VIN through a PPSR (Personal Property Securities Register) search to see whether money is owed on it.
Date of manufacture
The month and year the van was built. It is not the brochure's model year or the first registration date. All three can differ by a year or more.
What you do with itTreat the build date as the van's real age for resale, and ask why if a van advertised as current was built two years ago.
ATM (Aggregate Trailer Mass)Full definition
The maximum the loaded van is rated to weigh when it is standing on its own wheels and jockey wheel, unhitched. Set by the manufacturer.
What you do with itThis is the number you compare against your car's braked towing capacity, and the one a weighbridge ticket is measured against.
GTM (Gross Trailer Mass)Full definition
The maximum the van's own axles are rated to carry while it is hitched to the car. GTM sits below ATM because the towball takes a share of the weight.
What you do with itGTM is the figure Australian trailer brake rules are written in, so it is the one that decides what braking gear the van needs.
TareFull definition
The van's weight empty, as approved, with water tanks empty. Current vans show it on the plate. Some older vans show it on a separate label.
What you do with itATM minus Tare is your payload. That single subtraction tells you what is left for water, gas, food and gear.
Ball weight (towball download)Full definition
How much of the van's weight presses on the towball. The plate need not show it. Ask the maker or dealer for the loaded figure, or weigh it.
What you do with itCheck it against the car's towball limit, the towbar's label and the towball's stamp. The lowest applies.
Tyre size, load rating and pressures
Usually a separate placard from the ID plate. Vans up to 3,500kg GTM must carry one, showing tyre size, load rating, speed rating and cold pressure.
What you do with itCheck the fitted tyres match that load index, especially on a used van where someone has changed the wheels.
Axle rating
The maximum load each axle is rated to carry, often stamped on the axle beam itself rather than the plate.
What you do with itTwo axles rated at 1,600kg do not automatically make a 3,200kg van. The van's own GTM still caps it, and the lower number governs.
The same fields on a real van
These are the published figures for the Cub Campers Explorer, laid out the way a plate lays them out. The identity fields appear as labels because each one belongs to a single van rather than to a model.
- VIN
- 17 characters, this van only
- Date of manufacture
- Month and year of build
- ATM
- 1,400kg
- Tare
- 827kg
- GTM
- Stamped on the plate
The plate's own GTM is the figure that counts. The maker's ball weight is often for an empty van. Run the payload sum on any van with the payload calculator, which comes prefilled with published ATM and Tare figures.
One set of plate rules covers every state
The plate fields above are set nationally, under the Road Vehicle Standards laws and Australian Design Rule 61/03. They do not change at a state border. A van built under the current rules carries the same required fields in every state.
Where your car's towing figures are
Your car's tow rating, towball limit, GVM, GCM and axle limits are in the owner's manual. Cars approved under the newer rules, from 1 July 2021, need only a make and VIN label. If a GVM or towing upgrade is fitted, its label and certificate carry the figures that apply.
VIN
The car's 17-character identifier, repeated on the registration papers and usually visible through the base of the windscreen.
What you do with itA dealer's service department can pull the exact factory build, options and towing specification for your car from it.
Build date
Older cars may show a build date and a compliance date. Use the build date to match your car to its specifications.
What you do with itRatings can change part way through a model run, so match the manual and spec sheet to your build date.
GVM (Gross Vehicle Mass)Full definition
The maximum the car itself is rated to weigh fully loaded. That includes people, fuel, accessories, everything in the tray or boot, and the van's ball weight. The owner's manual lists it in the specifications section.
What you do with itGVM minus your car's kerb mass is the car's own payload. The van's ball weight comes out of that number first, before a single passenger.
GCM (Gross Combination Mass)Full definition
The maximum the loaded car and the loaded van are rated to weigh together. The owner's manual lists it in the towing section.
What you do with itGCM minus what your loaded car weighs is the ceiling the sums leave for the van, and it is often lower than the headline tow rating.
Kerb mass
The car ready to drive, usually with fluids and a full tank and nobody in it. Makers define it differently, and the owner's manual or spec sheet gives their figure.
What you do with itKerb mass is a factory number for a factory car. A bullbar, canopy, drawers, a second battery and a long-range tank all sit on top of it. A weighbridge gives you the real figure.
Axle load ratings
The maximum rated load on the front axle and on the rear axle, listed separately in the owner's manual. They do not simply add up to GVM.
What you do with itBall weight lands on the rear axle, and it can lift weight off the front. The rear axle can end up carrying more than the ball weight.
Tyre placard
A separate label, often in the driver's door jamb or the fuel filler flap. It gives the standard tyre size, load rating and the cold pressures the maker specifies.
What you do with itMany placards list a second set of pressures for a full load. The owner's manual says which set applies when towing.
Braked and unbraked towing capacityFull definition
The heaviest trailer the maker allows, with and without its own brakes. It is in the owner's manual, towing section. The towbar's label shows the towbar's own rating.
What you do with itYour limit is the lowest of the car's rating, the towbar's label, the towball's stamp and the van's coupling. GCM can set a lower one.
The arithmetic that connects the van and the car
Three sums turn the van's plate and the car's manual into something you can act on. None of them need a calculator. All of them need the figures for your exact van and car.
1. What the car itself can carry
GVM (Gross Vehicle Mass) minus kerb weight is the car's payload. The van's ball weight, the passengers, the bullbar, the drawers and the dog all come out of it.
2. What is left for the van
GCM minus the loaded car's actual weight. Loaded means the way you travel, with the family, the fuel and the gear in it. Use a weighbridge ticket for this sum.
3. The lowest ceiling governs
Compare the van's ATM with the braked tow rating, the GCM answer from sum two and the towbar and towball ratings. Then check the van's ball weight against the towball limit. The lowest limit applies.
If the van's ATM is above your car's tow rating
Queensland's transport department says the test is the van's actual loaded weight, and it must not exceed the car's tow rating. That leaves no room to load the van to its ATM. The towbar rating, the towball limit and GCM (Gross Combination Mass) still apply, and the lowest limit applies. Other states word this differently, so check yours. Our tow calculator compares the ATM, so it shows this pairing as outside the published ratings. Weigh the van loaded the way you travel.
Two real vehicles, the same tow rating
Both of these are rated to tow 3,500kg braked. Their published GCMs are 4,650kg apart, which is why the owner's manual for your exact variant matters more than the headline.
Isuzu D-MAX
SX Crew Cab Ute 4x2 2.2L
- Braked tow rating
- 3,500kg
- Published GCM
- 5,850kg
- GCM minus a 3,500kg van
- 2,350kg
Iveco Daily
70C 4x4 Crew Cab Chassis 4175mm wheelbase (F1C 3.0L 132kW/430Nm, ZF 8-speed Hi-Matic automatic)
- Braked tow rating
- 3,500kg
- Published GCM
- 10,500kg
- GCM minus a 3,500kg van
- 7,000kg
That last row is what the sums leave for the loaded car once a van at the full braked rating is hooked up. Whether it is enough depends on what your car weighs packed the way you travel. A weighbridge gives that figure.
One nameplate is not one set of numbers
Take the Land Rover Defender. Across its variants there are 11 different published GCM figures, from 6,300kg on the 110 / 130 (D300) to 6,730kg on the 110 - P425 (V8 petrol). Engine, drivetrain, body style and build year all move it. Use the owner's manual for your exact variant and build date.
Where to get the real weights
Every one of these sums improves the moment you replace an estimate with a weighbridge ticket. Weigh the whole rig hitched, then the car with the van still hitched, then the van alone. Release a weight-distribution hitch before you weigh. The weighbridge ticket guide shows how to read each pass.
If the plate is missing, unreadable or looks altered
An unreadable plate is a set of ratings you cannot check, which matters most on older, imported and hurried-sale vans.
Missing or faded
Start with the registration papers, which carry the VIN and often the ATM. The manufacturer can usually confirm the build details from the VIN, and your state or territory transport authority handles replacement plates. Requirements differ by state, so ask them rather than a forum.
Do not fill the gap with a brochure
Ratings vary by variant, options and build year. A spec sheet for the model does not replace the plate on the vehicle. Two vans off the same line can carry different tare figures if one has more options fitted.
Signs a plate deserves a second look
Fresh or mismatched rivets, a plate sitting proud of the surface, or fonts and spacing that change part way through the numbers. Above all, a VIN that does not match the chassis stamp and the registration papers. Photograph all three and compare them character by character.
On a used van, settle this before you pay
If the plate is missing, unreadable or does not match the papers, sort it out before you pay. Run a PPSR search on the VIN at ppsr.gov.au while you are at it. The full inspection routine is in the used caravan buying guide.
Common questions about compliance plates
Where is the compliance plate on a caravan?
Often on the drawbar near the coupling, or inside the door frame. Some makers use the front wall or the front boot bulkhead, and the van's handbook gives the exact spot.
Where is the compliance plate on a car or ute?
The driver's door jamb is a common place, as is the firewall or a strut tower under the bonnet. The owner's manual gives the exact spot for a specific vehicle. Cars approved since 1 July 2021 may carry only a make and VIN label. For towing figures, use the owner's manual.
What is the difference between ATM and GTM on a caravan plate?
ATM is the most the loaded van is rated to weigh unhitched, and GTM is the most its axles are rated to carry once hitched. ATM is what you compare against your car's braked towing capacity, and GTM is the figure the trailer brake rules use.
Is the caravan's Tare weight on the compliance plate?
On vans built under the current rules, yes. Some older vans show tare on a separate weight label. ATM minus tare is your payload.
Where do I find my car's GCM?
In the owner's manual, towing section, or on a GVM or towing upgrade's label and certificate. If you cannot find it, ask the car maker in writing. GCM (Gross Combination Mass) minus your loaded car's weight can be lower than the headline tow rating.
Does the compliance plate show the caravan's height or length?
No. The plate carries identity and mass ratings, and travel height and length come from the maker's specifications. For a low bridge or a carport, measure the van as it sits, air conditioner included.
Why does my newer car have no compliance plate?
The rules changed from 1 July 2021. Cars approved under the new rules need only a label with the make and VIN, and some makers add a weight label. Your GVM and towing figures are in the owner's manual.
Do new caravans still get a compliance plate?
Yes. It gets a durable plate fixed to the van. It shows the make, the VIN, the ATM, the GTM and the tare.
Is the compliance plate the same as the build plate or VIN plate?
In everyday use, yes. Compliance plate, ID plate, build plate and VIN plate all mean the plate carrying a caravan's identity and mass ratings. Layouts differ between makers and build years.
What if the compliance plate is missing, unreadable or looks altered?
Treat it as a reason to pause, especially on a used van. Check the VIN against the chassis stamp and the papers, run a PPSR search, and ask the seller for a straight explanation before you pay.
Plate locations and layouts are set by each manufacturer and change between models and build years. Treat the locations here as the places to look first, and your owner's manual as the answer for your vehicle. The figures shown come from published manufacturer data and are for comparison. The plate on the van in front of you, and the manual for your exact car, are the ones that count.
Got the numbers for your van and car?
The tow calculator checks a van against your car's tow rating, towball limit and GCM. Or read the weights guide end to end.