DUI Laws & Penalties in Florida

Compared with other states, Florida has one of the toughest set of DUI laws in the nation.

However, like other states, Florida has what is called an "implied consent" law. The term implied consent refers to the idea that every driver who operates a motor vehicle in Florida acknowledges that driving on the roads is a privilege, and in advance consents to take a urine drug test, an alcohol breath test or a chemical blood test in the case of a death or other serious injury. A physical test to check for exceeding the alcohol limit is also covered in the implied consent. If a driver refuses to submit to the chemical test, they will automatically have their license suspended for twelve to eighteen months.

Florida DUI laws assume that a person who takes a chemical test that results in a BAC or blood alcohol content of .08% or higher is "under the influence", however if the BAC is between the range of .051% and .079%, it is still admissible in court even though the driver wouldn't technically be considered "under the influence" by the law.

The DUI laws in Florida also require that a person who is found to have a chemical test result with a blood alcohol content of .08% or higher would get a six month suspension for their first offense.

According to the law, the police are required to detain a person at the police station after they are arrested for a DUI for a minimum of eight hours, or until the person who is impaired has a blood or breath alcohol level of .05% or lower.

Unfortunately, the eight or more hour stay in jail is not the end of your problems if you have been charged with a DUI in the state of Florida. Once you are convicted of a DUI, the state of Florida requires a mandatory minimum of 50 hours community service, up to a year of probation, possible jail time for up to nine months and fines up to $1,000, all just for your first offense. Additionally, if your blood alcohol content was .15% or higher or if you had a child under the age of 18 in the car with you at the time of your arrest, the state of Florida requires your license to be suspended for a minimum of six months and also requires that an ignition interlock system be installed on your vehicle.

Under the law, the state of Florida can also impose even harsher penalties for a second or third DUI offense conviction including longer jail time, revoked or suspended license and of course additional fines.

The state of Florida considers a DUI conviction for a fourth offense to be a third degree felony, which requires your license to be automatically and permanently revoked, and comes with a prison sentence of as much as 10 years.

Your insurance premiums will definitely go up if you are convicted of even one DUI in the state of Florida, and your insurance provider retains the option to cancel your coverage as well. Even a single DUI conviction in the state of Florida requires a driver to carry what is known as "high risk" insurance for a minimum of 3 years following the conviction.

The name of Florida's high risk insurance is called SR22 Insurance. The Department of Motor Vehicles or DMV requires the SR22 form to be filed at their office by your insurance company once your license is reinstated following a DUI revocation. A requirement of Florida's SR22 Insurance is that your insurance company must inform the DMV if your coverage lapses at any time or for any reason.

Additional resources

SR22 Insurance Quotes
SR22 Insurance By State