If a city bus, a county vehicle, a state agency, or a dangerous condition on public property caused your injury, Florida does not let you walk straight into court the way you would against a private driver. Under Fla. Stat. §768.28, you generally must give written pre-suit notice, wait through a statutory investigation period, and then file within a longer window that applies to public defendants. Miss those steps and a strong claim can die on procedure.
The Numbers That Matter Under §768.28
For most claims against the state or a subdivision, written notice must be presented within three years of when the claim accrues. After proper notice, you ordinarily wait six months before filing suit. For medical malpractice and wrongful death claims against a public entity, that wait is ninety days rather than six months. Wrongful death notice is due within two years, and both medical malpractice and wrongful death suits must be filed within two years, not the four-year period that applies to other claims against a public entity.
Once notice is in order, a lawsuit against the public entity generally must be filed within four years of accrual. That is not the same clock as the two-year negligence deadline that applies to many private defendants after House Bill 837. If your case also names a private driver or company, that private claim can still run on the shorter two-year period even while the public claim runs on the sovereign-immunity timeline.
Who Must Receive The Notice
Written notice has to identify the claimant, the injury, and enough facts for the entity to investigate. A police report, an email to a risk manager, or a call to an adjuster is not a substitute.
Written notice goes to the responsible agency in every case. It also goes to the Department of Financial Services, except when the claim is against a municipality, a county, or the Florida Space Authority. School boards, transit authorities, and other special districts are outside that exception, so they still require notice to the agency and to DFS. Sending notice only to a private insurer, or skipping DFS when the defendant is not a city, a county, or the Space Authority, is a common way to lose the claim.
A bus accident claim against a public transit operator is the clearest everyday example. A premises claim on a county building or a crash with a city fleet vehicle in a routine car accident raises the same notice machinery.
Where Local Government Density Matters
In Tallahassee, state agencies appear as defendants more often than in most Florida cities, which means DFS notice is frequently part of the checklist. In Miami, a county or city vehicle is noticed at that government, while a school board or an independent authority still requires DFS notice as well. In Jacksonville, the consolidated city-county is noticed locally, but the Jacksonville Transportation Authority is an independent authority and still requires notice to DFS.
How This Interacts With Other Deadlines
Government notice sits beside other clocks rather than replacing them. The two-year private negligence deadline still matters when a private co-defendant shares fault. Medical malpractice against a public hospital adds its own pre-suit investigation on top of the ninety-day wait after notice. A claim that looks like a simple crash can become a notice problem the moment a public employee or public property is in the chain of fault.
People often learn the government angle late, after they have already opened a claim with the private insurer on the other vehicle. The three-year notice window is longer than many people expect, yet evidence still disappears in weeks. Early screening for any public defendant therefore protects both the notice path and the proof.
What To Do If A Public Entity Might Be Involved
- Write down every vehicle, agency, and location connected to the incident
- Do not assume a private insurer’s claim number covers the public defendant
- Preserve photos, incident reports, and witness names immediately
- Speak with counsel so notice goes to the correct agency, and to DFS unless the defendant is a municipality, a county, or the Florida Space Authority
A free case review can identify whether notice is required, which offices must receive it, and which filing clock applies to each defendant.
Evidence While The Waiting Period Runs
The statutory wait after notice is not a reason to stop investigating. Camera footage on a bus, depot GPS logs, maintenance records for a public sidewalk, and employee incident reports are all held by the entity you just noticed. Those materials follow retention schedules that do not pause for the six-month or ninety-day wait.
Send preservation demands that name the categories of evidence. Keep treating and document every provider so the medical story stays continuous while the government claim works through its required steps.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to give notice under Fla. Stat. 768.28?
For most claims, written notice must be presented within three years of accrual, followed by a six-month wait before suit (ninety days for medical malpractice and wrongful death). Suit against the public entity is generally due within four years. Wrongful death notice is due within two years, and both medical malpractice and wrongful death suits must be filed within two years.
Does notice always go to the Department of Financial Services?
No. Notice goes to the responsible agency in every case, and also to the Department of Financial Services except for claims against a municipality, a county, or the Florida Space Authority. School boards, transit authorities, and other special districts still require DFS notice.
What are the damage caps against a Florida public entity?
Absent a claims bill, recovery against the state or a subdivision remains limited to $200,000 per person and $300,000 per incident. A 2026 bill to raise those caps was vetoed, so those figures still apply.
Can I still have a claim against a private driver too?
Yes. Many cases involve both a private defendant and a public one. Notice and the four-year public-entity clock apply to the public defendant; the private claim often runs on the ordinary two-year negligence deadline for injuries on or after March 24, 2023. Both need to be identified early.