Florida Traffic Laws Handbook: DUI, Right-of-Way, and Penalties

Driving in Florida is governed by Chapter 316 of the Florida Statutes, which sets the rules on speed, right-of-way, seat belts, phone use, impaired driving, and what you owe other people after a crash. The Florida traffic laws below are the ones that most often produce tickets, points, suspensions, and criminal charges, along with the fines and consequences attached to each.

Speed Limits and Speeding Fines

Florida’s basic speed law requires you to drive at a speed reasonable for current conditions, whatever the sign says.¹ Heavy rain, fog, or stop-and-go traffic can make the posted number too fast, and a crash at the posted limit in bad conditions can still get you cited.

Where no limit is posted, the defaults are 30 mph in municipalities and business or residential districts² and 70 mph on limited-access highways.³

Speeding fines are tiered by how far over the limit you were:⁴

1–5 mph over: warning, no fine
6–9 mph over: $25
10–14 mph over: $100
15–19 mph over: $150
20–29 mph over: $175
30 mph or more over: $250

Those are base fines only. Court costs and administrative fees are added on top. Speeding in a school zone or in a construction zone where workers are present doubles the fine, and a second conviction for 30-plus mph over within 12 months also doubles.⁴

Right-of-Way at Intersections

If another vehicle has already entered the intersection, you yield to it. If two vehicles arrive at the same time from different roads, the driver on the left yields to the driver on the right.⁵

At a stop sign, come to a complete stop at the marked line, or before the crosswalk if there is no line, or at the point where you can see oncoming traffic if there is neither. Then yield to any vehicle already in the intersection or close enough to be an immediate hazard. At yield signs, the same logic applies, except you slow instead of stop unless safety requires it. If you blow past a yield sign and crash, the statute treats that as automatic evidence you failed to yield.⁶

Signaling and Lane Changes

Your turn signal has to go on at least 100 feet before you turn or change lanes,⁷ roughly six or seven car lengths at city speeds. Once you’re in a lane, stay in it until it’s safe to move.⁸ These are two of the violations officers look for most on routine patrol, and each carries a $60 base fine plus court costs.⁴

The Move Over Law

When an emergency vehicle, sanitation truck, utility vehicle, tow truck, or disabled car is stopped on the roadside with flashing lights, you must move over out of the lane directly next to it. This applies on any highway with two or more lanes going your direction.⁹

If you can’t safely change lanes, or you’re on a two-lane road with nowhere to go, slow to 20 mph below the posted limit, or 5 mph if the limit is 20 or less.⁹ A violation is a moving offense with a $60 base fine and three points.⁴

Seat Belts and Child Restraints

Florida’s seat belt law is primary enforcement: an officer can stop you solely for being unbuckled.¹⁰ Every passenger under 18 must be buckled in every seat, and everyone 18 or older must be buckled in the front seat.¹¹ A seat belt violation is a nonmoving infraction with a $30 base fine before fees.⁴

Children five and under must ride in a crash-tested, federally approved child restraint. The device depends on age:¹²

Birth through age 3: a separate child safety carrier or the vehicle manufacturer’s integrated child seat.
Ages 4 and 5: a carrier, integrated seat, or booster that lets the vehicle’s safety belt fit properly.

A child restraint violation is a moving infraction: $60 base fine and three points on the driver’s license.¹²⁴

School Buses, Bicyclists, and Pedestrians

When a school bus extends its stop signal, stop completely and wait until the signal is withdrawn and the bus moves, whether you’re behind the bus or coming from the opposite direction. The only exception is when a raised median, physical barrier, or unpaved space of at least five feet separates your lanes from the bus.¹³

The fines are among the steepest in the traffic code. Failing to stop for a school bus is a $200 base fine. Passing on the side where children enter or exit jumps to $400. If your violation causes serious injury or death, the fine is $1,500, your license is suspended for at least a year, and you’ll be ordered to complete 120 hours of community service at a trauma center.⁴¹⁴

When passing a bicyclist, leave at least three feet of space between your vehicle and the bike. If you can’t create that gap safely, stay behind until you can.¹⁵ At crosswalks and intersections, yield to pedestrians in the crossing area. A crash with a cyclist or pedestrian tied to a three-foot or crosswalk violation creates significant civil liability on top of the citation.

Texting and Distracted Driving

Florida law prohibits manually typing, sending, or reading text-based messages on a wireless device while the vehicle is moving. That includes texting, email, and instant messaging.¹⁶ It’s a primary enforcement offense, so an officer can stop you for this alone.

A first offense is a nonmoving violation with a $30 base fine. A second offense within five years of a prior conviction becomes a moving violation, with a higher fine and points.¹⁶ If texting causes a crash, six points go on your record.¹⁷

The statute carves out exceptions for GPS and navigation apps, traffic and weather alerts, voice-activated communication that doesn’t require typing, and reporting emergencies. If your car is stationary, the prohibition doesn’t apply.¹⁶

DUI and Implied Consent

You’re driving under the influence if your blood-alcohol or breath-alcohol level reaches 0.08 or higher, or if alcohol or drugs impair your normal faculties to any extent.¹⁸ DUI is a criminal offense, not a civil traffic ticket, and penalties escalate with each conviction:

First conviction: $500–$1,000 fine, up to 6 months in jail.
Second conviction: $1,000–$2,000 fine, up to 9 months in jail, and a mandatory ignition interlock device for at least one year.
Third conviction within 10 years: third-degree felony, with a mandatory interlock for at least two years.
Fourth or subsequent conviction: third-degree felony regardless of timing, with a minimum $2,000 fine.

If your BAC is 0.15 or higher, or you have a passenger under 18 in the vehicle, the penalties jump. A first offense in that category is a $1,000–$2,000 fine, up to 9 months in jail, and a mandatory interlock for at least six continuous months. A second enhanced offense is $2,000–$4,000 in fines, up to 12 months in jail, and an interlock for at least two years.¹⁸

By driving on Florida roads, you’ve already agreed to submit to a breath, blood, or urine test if lawfully arrested for DUI. Refusing a breath test triggers an automatic one-year license suspension for a first refusal. A second or subsequent refusal extends the suspension to 18 months and is itself a first-degree misdemeanor, so you can face criminal charges for the refusal alone on top of the DUI case.¹⁹

What You Owe After a Crash

If you’re involved in a crash that causes injury, death, or damage to an attended vehicle or property, you must stop at the scene, give your name, address, and vehicle registration number to anyone affected, show your license if asked, and help anyone injured, including arranging transportation to a hospital if treatment appears necessary.²⁰

If no one at the scene can receive your information and no officer is present, report the crash to the nearest police authority as soon as possible.²⁰ Leaving is treated far more seriously than the underlying violation. Under the fleeing-and-eluding statute, leaving a crash scene and then refusing to stop for police is a second-degree felony if it causes injury, and a first-degree felony with a mandatory three-year prison sentence if it causes serious bodily injury or death.²¹

Insurance Requirements

Every vehicle registered in Florida must carry at least $10,000 in property damage liability coverage,²² plus $10,000 in personal injury protection under the state’s no-fault system. Florida does not require bodily injury liability insurance for general registration, though certain events trigger it.

A DUI conviction sends the insurance requirements up sharply. You must then carry $100,000 per person and $300,000 per crash in bodily injury liability, plus $50,000 in property damage liability.²³

Driving without insurance leads to a three-year suspension of your license and registration. Reinstatement requires a $150 fee for a first offense, or $250–$500 for repeat offenses, plus filing an SR-22 proof-of-insurance certificate for three years.

Points and License Suspensions

Every moving-violation conviction adds points to your driving record. Accumulate too many and your license is suspended:¹⁷

12 points in 12 months: suspension for up to 30 days.
18 points in 18 months: suspension for up to 3 months.
24 points in 36 months: suspension for up to 1 year.

Common point values:¹⁷

Speeding 15 mph or less over: 3 points
Speeding more than 15 mph over: 4 points
Running a red light: 4 points
Reckless driving: 4 points
Passing a stopped school bus: 4 points, 6 if it causes serious injury or death
Leaving the scene of a crash with property damage: 6 points
Any moving violation that causes a crash: 4 points
Texting while driving that causes a crash: 6 points

Points attach based on the date of the violation, not the date of conviction. Most other moving violations carry 3 points.¹⁷ If you’re near a suspension threshold, a state-approved driver improvement course may help, though eligibility depends on the violation.

1
Florida Senate. Florida Code 316.183 – Unlawful Speed
2
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 316.189 – Establishment of Municipal and County Speed Zones
3
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 316.187 – Establishment of State Speed Zones
4
Florida Senate. Florida Code 318.18 – Amount of Penalties
5
Florida Senate. Florida Code 316.121 – Vehicles Approaching or Entering Intersections
6
Florida Senate. Florida Code 316.123 – Vehicle Entering Stop or Yield Intersection
7
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 316.155 – When Signal Required
8
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 316.089 – Driving on Roadways Laned for Traffic
9
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 316.126 – Operation of Vehicles and Actions of Pedestrians
10
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Buckle Up Florida, Its the Law
11
Florida Senate. Florida Code 316.614 – Safety Belt Usage
12
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 316.613 – Child Restraint Requirements
13
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 316.172 – Traffic to Stop for School Bus
14
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. School Bus Safety
15
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 316.083 – Overtaking and Passing a Vehicle, a Bicycle or Other Nonmotorized Vehicle, or an Electric Bicycle
16
Florida Senate. Florida Code 316.305 – Wireless Communications Devices Prohibition
17
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 322.27 – Authority of Department to Suspend or Revoke License
18
Florida Senate. Florida Code 316.193 – Driving Under the Influence
19
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 316.1932 – Tests for Alcohol, Chemical Substances, or Controlled Substances
20
Florida Senate. Florida Code 316.062 – Duty to Give Information and Render Aid
21
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 316.1935 – Fleeing or Attempting to Elude a Law Enforcement Officer
22
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 324.022 – Financial Responsibility for Property Damage
23
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 324.023 – Financial Responsibility for Bodily Injury or Death