Truck and trailer rules in Florida: licence class, brakes, size limits and intrastate carrier rules

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. The sources are four sections of the Florida Statutes, read on the Florida Legislature's website. The agency named in the licence section is the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Federal background and the other places are on the parent page, trucks and trailers for tree work.

At a glance

Item	What the statutes say
Class A licence	Combination with a gross weight or rating of 26,001 pounds or more, towing a unit over 10,000 pounds
Class B licence	Single vehicle of 26,001 pounds or more, or towing 10,000 pounds or less
Trailer brake weight	Brakes on all wheels, except a trailer of 3,000 pounds or less meeting two conditions
Breakaway	Brakes that apply automatically and stay applied at least 15 minutes, for trailers over 3,000 pounds
Width, height	102 inches wide, 13 feet 6 inches high
Intrastate carrier rules	Federal rules as of December 31, 2023, with an exemption below 26,001 pounds

Licence classes

Section 322.54 says a person who drives a motor vehicle combination with a gross vehicle weight rating or gross vehicle weight of 26,001 pounds or more must hold a Class A licence if the vehicle being towed is more than 10,000 pounds. A person who drives a single motor vehicle of 26,001 pounds or more must hold a Class B licence, as must one who drives such a vehicle towing a unit of 10,000 pounds or less. A Class C licence covers vehicles under 26,001 pounds that need certain endorsements, and Class E covers other motor vehicles. A nonresident driving a commercial motor vehicle in the state must hold a commercial driver licence. Driving a commercial motor vehicle without a valid commercial licence is a misdemeanor of the first degree, while a licence expired for 30 days or less is a nonmoving violation. See section 322.54 on classification.

Trailer brakes and breakaway

Section 316.261 says every motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer and pole trailer, and any combination, must have brakes that meet the chapter. Brakes must act on all wheels, except trailers, semitrailers or pole trailers of a gross weight not exceeding 3,000 pounds, provided the total weight on and including the wheels of the trailer or trailers does not exceed 40 percent of the gross weight of the towing vehicle, and the combination can meet the stopping performance in section 316.262. Pole trailers over 3,000 pounds made before January 1, 1972 need not have brakes.

Subsection (4) covers breakaway. Every trailer or semitrailer with air or vacuum brakes, every trailer and semitrailer with a gross weight over 3,000 pounds, and every pole trailer over 3,000 pounds made or assembled after January 1, 1972, must have brakes on all wheels that are applied automatically and promptly upon breakaway from the towing vehicle and remain applied for at least 15 minutes. A tow vehicle made after that date and pulling a braked trailer must be able to stop with its service brakes after a breakaway. A violation is a noncriminal traffic infraction punished as a nonmoving violation. The section does not mention safety chains. See section 316.261 on brake equipment.

Width, height and length

Section 316.515 sets a total outside width of 102 inches for any vehicle or load, excluding safety devices the department finds necessary, and a height of 13 feet 6 inches including load, with an automobile transporter allowed 14 feet. Length limits apply to a semitrailer or trailer rather than to the whole combination. A combination of commercial motor vehicles may have no more than one truck tractor and two trailing units. A combination of vehicles that are not commercial motor vehicles may have no more than two units coupled and may not exceed 65 feet including load. A semitrailer in a tractor-semitrailer combination may not exceed 48 feet unless it meets the conditions for up to 57 feet, and a trailer in a tandem trailer truck combination may not exceed 28 feet. The page also covers permits for longer semitrailers under section 316.550. See section 316.515 on width, height and length.

Federal safety rules for work inside the state

Section 316.302 says owners and drivers of commercial motor vehicles in interstate commerce are subject to 49 CFR parts 382 to 386 and 390 to 397, and that those in intrastate commerce are subject to the same parts as they existed on December 31, 2023. For intrastate work with no placarded hazardous materials, the section drops 49 CFR 391.11(b)(1) and 395.3, sets its own limits of 12 hours of driving after 10 hours off duty and no driving after the 16th hour on duty, and sets a weekly limit of 70 hours in 7 consecutive days or 80 hours in 8 consecutive days. Within a 150 air-mile radius of the base, 49 CFR 395.8 and 395.11 need not be followed if the section's conditions are met.

The section also says a person operating a commercial motor vehicle with a gross vehicle weight, gross vehicle weight rating and gross combined weight rating all under 26,001 pounds, solely in intrastate commerce and with no placarded hazardous materials, is exempt from the section's subsection (1). That person must still follow 49 CFR parts 382, 392 and 393, and sections 396.3(a)(1) and 396.9. A separate exemption covers intrastate hauling of agricultural products, including horticultural or forestry products, from the farm or harvest place to the first place of processing or storage. The pages read do not name a state carrier number. See section 316.302 on commercial vehicle safety regulations.