Accidents With Government Vehicles in Florida

Miami-Dade Transit runs one of the largest bus fleets in the Southeast, and county, city and state vehicles are on every road. When one of them causes a crash, the claim is against the government, and Florida handles those claims under a statute with its own rules and limits.

Written by the Florida Injury Team Legal Content Team · Reviewed for accuracy by our network of licensed Florida attorneys · Learn about our editorial process

Sovereign immunity and the waiver

Governments in Florida are immune from lawsuits except to the extent the Legislature has waived that immunity. Florida Statute 768.28 is the waiver. It allows negligence claims against the state, counties, cities, school boards and their agencies, including Miami-Dade Transit, Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office vehicles, city police and fire vehicles, school buses and FDOT contractors in some situations.

The rules that are different

• Written notice. Before suing, you must present a written claim to the agency and, for state agencies, also to the Florida Department of Financial Services. For most claims the notice must be given within 3 years of the incident, and the agency has 6 months to investigate before a lawsuit can be filed.
• Caps on damages. Recovery is limited to $200,000 per person and $300,000 per incident, regardless of how serious the injury is. Amounts above the cap can only be paid if the Legislature passes a claim bill, which is rare and slow.
• No punitive damages and no prejudgment interest.
• The employee is usually not personally liable. The claim is against the agency, unless the employee acted in bad faith or with malicious purpose.

Which vehicles this covers in Miami-Dade

• Metrobus, Metrorail and Metromover operated by Miami-Dade Transit
• Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office and city police vehicles, including pursuits
• Fire rescue and county ambulances
• Miami-Dade County Public Schools buses
• Public works, sanitation and water and sewer trucks
• FDOT and county road maintenance vehicles

Brightline and private charter buses are not government entities; claims against them follow ordinary negligence rules with no caps.

Passengers on a Metrobus

A bus passenger injured by a sudden stop, a crash or a fall while boarding has a claim against the county under the same statute. If another driver caused the crash, the passenger also has an ordinary claim against that driver with no cap. Florida’s PIP applies first for medical bills, from the passenger’s own policy if they have one.

Why the timing matters

Because of the notice requirement and the six-month investigation period, government claims take longer to file and must be started earlier. Transit agencies also keep onboard camera footage for limited periods. The firm we refer you to sends the statutory notice, requests the video and the driver’s records, and calendars the deadlines that apply to the specific agency.