Florida · Tallahassee, Leon County
Tallahassee truck accident claims
Tallahassee is where the State of Florida keeps its head offices, including the Department of Transportation’s (opens in a new tab). When the vehicle that hit you belonged to a public body, anywhere in Florida, the claim follows rules a claim against a trucking company does not.
The short answer
How do you bring a claim after a crash with a government vehicle in Florida?
In writing first, and within set limits. Florida has waived the government’s immunity from injury claims only to the extent one statute says (opens in a new tab). Before any lawsuit, the claim must be presented in writing to the agency within 3 years after it accrues, or 2 in a wrongful death case, and the agency then has 6 months to respond, or 90 days in a death case. The same statute limits what the government can be made to pay.
How much truck traffic passes through Tallahassee?
The region’s transportation planning agency calls I-10 the region’s primary freight artery, carrying about 8,000 heavy trucks a day (opens in a new tab).
Florida’s highway safety department counted 552 crashes involving commercial motor vehicles in Leon County in 2024, with 3 deaths (opens in a new tab). That count includes buses and smaller commercial vehicles as well as tractor-trailers.
One state road project in the city is on Capital Circle. The transportation department’s page shows a rebuild of 2.2 miles as a six-lane divided road, with completion estimated for summer 2030 (opens in a new tab).
What is different about a claim against the State, a county or a city?
One statute covers all of them. Florida waives its immunity for the State and for its agencies and subdivisions (opens in a new tab), a phrase that takes in counties and cities.
The claim has to be presented in writing before a lawsuit can be filed. It goes to the agency and, unless the claim is against a city or a county, to the Department of Financial Services as well, within 3 years after it accrues (opens in a new tab). In a wrongful death case the period is 2 years.
Then there is a wait. The government has 6 months to make a final disposition, or 90 days in a wrongful death case (opens in a new tab), and if it does not, the claim is treated as denied and the suit can be filed.
The person who was driving is usually not the defendant. A public employee acting within the scope of the job generally cannot be held personally liable or named in the suit (opens in a new tab). The claim is against the agency.
Is there a limit on what the government pays?
Yes. The State and its agencies and subdivisions cannot be made to pay more than $200,000 to one person or $300,000 for one incident (opens in a new tab) without a further act of the Legislature.
A court can enter a judgment for more than that. Unless the agency settles within its insurance coverage, the part above the limit can be paid only by a further act of the Legislature (opens in a new tab).
The limits were not raised in 2026. A bill to raise them passed both chambers and was vetoed by the Governor on June 30, 2026 (opens in a new tab).
The government’s liability also does not include punitive damages or interest for the period before judgment (opens in a new tab).
Where is a Tallahassee truck accident case filed?
Leon County is one of six counties in Florida’s Second Judicial Circuit (opens in a new tab). The circuit gives its address as 301 South Monroe Street, Tallahassee (opens in a new tab), and the clerk handles circuit civil cases there (opens in a new tab).
State roads in the county are not run from Tallahassee. Leon County is in the transportation department’s District Three, whose main office is in Chipley (opens in a new tab).
A carrier from another state may be able to move a case to federal court. Leon County is in the Northern District of Florida, and federal law lists Tallahassee among the places where that court is held (opens in a new tab).
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I sue the State of Florida after a crash with a state vehicle?
Yes, within the limits the Legislature has set. The claim must first be presented in writing within 3 years (opens in a new tab), or 2 in a death case, and the State then has 6 months to respond, or 90 days in a death case, before a suit can be filed.
Can I sue the driver of a city or county truck personally?
Generally not. A public employee acting within the scope of the job cannot be held personally liable (opens in a new tab) unless he or she acted in bad faith, with malicious purpose, or with wanton and willful disregard for safety. The claim is against the government body.
Did Florida raise its limits on claims against the government in 2026?
No. A bill to raise them passed the House and the Senate and was vetoed on June 30, 2026 (opens in a new tab). The limits in the statute are unchanged.
Keep reading
- 01
Truck crash law
The deadlines, the shared-fault bar, no-fault coverage, the safety rules and who answers for a crash.
Truck crash law page - 02
Miami
PortMiami, the airport, and the roads between them
Miami page - 03
Fort Lauderdale
Fuel tankers from Port Everglades face stricter safety rules and must carry more insurance
Fort Lauderdale page - 04
Fort Myers
How long the driver had been at the wheel on I-75, and whether a log had to show it
Fort Myers page