Florida hotshot — local rules

Must-have

• Florida registration and insurance that matches how you actually haul.
• Intrastate vs interstate: the freight’s journey, not just your odometer.
• Oversize/overweight through Florida — permits before you roll, not after the first trooper.
• Agricultural inspection stations are real. Lights and securement.

The rule

• Interstate vs intrastate

  A Florida pickup of freight that originated out of state is often still interstate commerce.

What they don’t publish

• ‘I never left Florida’ is not a defense if the shipment is moving in interstate commerce.
• Tampa–St. Pete metro bumper-pulls are how consecutive days stack. That is the playbook. It is also how short-haul stays valid — if you actually return inside 14 hours.

Official desks

• FLHSMV
• SAFER carrier snapshot

• I know if today’s freight is interstate in character
• Florida registration matches the truck
• Permits in hand if the load is wide or heavy