Fla. Stat. § 316.300
civil infractionverifiedCertain vehicles to carry flares or other devices
How Florida classifies this section
Noncriminal traffic infraction (civil)
“Except as provided in ss. 318.17 and 320.07(3)(c), any person cited for a violation of chapter 316, s. 320.0605, s. 320.07(3)(a) or (b), s. 322.065, s. 322.15(1), s. 322.16(2) or (3), s. 322.1615, s. 322.19, or s. 1006.66(3) is charged with a noncriminal infraction”
— § 318.14(1), Fla. Stat., verbatim
The statute, verbatim
316.300 Certain vehicles to carry flares or other devices. — (1) No person shall operate any truck, bus, truck tractor, trailer, semitrailer, pole trailer, or motor vehicle towing a house trailer, when such vehicle is 80 inches or more in overall width or 30 feet or more in overall length, upon any highway outside an urban district or upon any divided highway at any time between sunset and sunrise unless there is carried in such vehicle the following equipment, except as provided in subsection (2): (a) At least three flares, three red electric lanterns, or three portable red emergency reflectors, each of which shall be capable of being seen and distinguished at a distance of not less than 600 feet under normal atmospheric conditions at nighttime. No flare, fusee, electric lantern, or warning flag shall be used for the purpose of compliance with the requirements of this section unless such equipment is of a type which has been submitted to the department and approved by it. No portable reflector unit shall be used for the purpose of compliance with the requirements of this section unless it is so designed and constructed as to be capable of reflecting red light clearly visible from all distances within 600 feet to 100 feet under normal atmospheric conditions at night when directly in front of lawful lower beams of headlamps and unless it is of a type which has been submitted to the department and approved by it. (b) At least three red-burning fusees, unless red electric lanterns or red portable emergency reflectors are carried. (2) No person shall operate at the time and under conditions stated in subsection (1) any motor vehicle used for the transportation of explosives or any cargo tank truck used for the transportation of flammable liquids or compressed gases unless there is carried in such vehicle three red electric lanterns or three portable red emergency reflectors meeting the requirements of subsection (1), and there shall not be carried in any such vehicle any flares, fusees, or signal produced by flame. (3) No person shall operate any vehicle described in subsection (1) or subsection (2) upon any highway outside an urban district or upon a divided highway at any time when lighted lamps are not required by s. 316.217 unless there is carried in such vehicle at least two red flags, not less than 12 inches square, with standards to support such flags, or two red portable emergency reflectors of the type described in subsection (1). (4) A violation of this section is a noncriminal traffic infraction, punishable as a nonmoving violation as provided in chapter 318. History. — s. 1, ch. 71-135; s. 1, ch. 76-31; s. 1, ch. 81-49; s. 213, ch. 99-248. Note. — Former s. 316.274.
sha256 a74700f205782ce289816eb10dfdd324… · 2025 Fla. Stat., dual fetch-path pipeline · permanent corpus page →
Which text, as of when
2025 Florida Statuteslast amended 1999Decoded against the 2025 Florida Statutes as ingested — dual fetch-path verified, hash-pinned. Session laws amend sections on their own effective dates; the 2026 Laws of Florida are indexed as the corpus's overlay.
History. — s. 1, ch. 71-135; s. 1, ch. 76-31; s. 1, ch. 81-49; s. 213, ch. 99-248. Note. — Former s. 316.274.
License points — the scale, shown
Point values attach on conviction, under § 322.27(3)(d)'s graduated scale. Which row a case lands on can turn on facts the citation and the disposition determine — the rows that could reach this section are shown with their own words and conditions. The scale is shown, not applied.
“All other moving violations (including parking on a highway outside the limits of a municipality)—3 points.”
“Any moving violation covered in this paragraph, excluding unlawful speed and unlawful use of a wireless communications device, resulting in a crash—4 points.”
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Open the War Room — free accountQuestions drivers ask
Is a section 316.300 ticket criminal or a civil infraction in Florida?
Section 316.300 sits in the noncriminal traffic infraction framework: Except as provided in ss. 318.17 and 320.07(3)(c), any person cited for a violation of chapter 316, s. 320.0605, s. 320.07(3)(a) or (b), s. 322.065, s. 322.15(1), s. 322.16(2) or (3), s. 322.1615, s. 322.19, or s. 1006.6… (§ 318.14(1), Fla. Stat.). The § 318.17 criminal exceptions do not name this section.
What is the deadline after a section 316.300 citation?
Under § 318.14(4)(a), a person charged with a noncriminal infraction who does not elect to appear generally has 30 days after the date of issuance to pay or enter the clerk's payment plan. The War Room computes the exact window from your citation's issuance date, arithmetic shown, and § 318.15 states what follows a missed window. Verify any date with the clerk of the county on the citation.
What are the options after a section 316.300 ticket?
The § 318.14 menu, where it applies: pay the penalty (an admission by statute), enter a payment plan, elect the basic driver improvement course where eligible (adjudication withheld, no points, once per 12 months and eight times lifetime), or request the infraction hearing where the state must prove the infraction beyond a reasonable doubt (§ 318.14(6)). Any option can be walked with a licensed attorney — choosing is yours, or one to make with counsel.
How many license points can section 316.300 carry?
Points attach on conviction under § 322.27(3)(d)'s graduated scale. The rows that could reach this section carry 3, 4 points, with conditions the statute itself states (crash involvement, speed over the limit, school-zone factors). The scale is shown, not applied — which row fits a case depends on facts the citation and the disposition determine.
Can this page tell me what to do about my ticket?
No — and that line is the product. It shows the statute verbatim, the classification, the point rows, and the options with their stated consequences. What to do about a specific ticket is a decision for you, or for a licensed attorney; the free War Room decodes your citation, and the attorney connection is free to request with the firm billing directly.
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