Get Your Security Deposit Back in Florida

Start here if your rental was in Florida

This is the Florida security-deposit dashboard. Use it when the rental was in Florida, then choose the issue closest to what is happening with your deposit.

Florida renters need the Florida path because the state uses a split timeline: 15 days if the landlord makes no claim, 30 days to send a written claim notice if money is being withheld, and 15 days for the renter to object after receiving that notice.

Choose your security-deposit problem

• Deposit not returned - what to do when the refund or claim notice did not arrive.
• Security deposit deadline - understand Florida's 15-day, 30-day, and objection windows.
• Deductions and claim notices - check whether the landlord's claim is timely and supported.
• Normal wear and tear - separate ordinary use from chargeable damage.
• Evidence - preserve dates, notices, mail, email, photos, and lease records.
• Demand letter - send the right written step after the Florida timeline is clear.
• Small claims - understand the court path if the dispute still does not resolve.
• Toolkit - see the Florida Recovery System and how the steps fit together.

What Florida law is built around

Florida has a split process. A landlord who does not intend to impose a claim must return the deposit and required interest within 15 days after the rental agreement terminates after you vacate.

If the landlord intends to impose a claim, the landlord must send written notice within 30 days after termination. That notice goes by certified mail to your last known mailing address, or by email only if Florida's electronic-notice rule applies.

If you receive a claim notice and disagree, you have 15 days after receiving it to object in writing. Florida also has deposit-holding, interest, disclosure, and early-vacating notice rules that can matter in the right case.

Read the full Florida law overview

This is a sequence, not one magic letter

One letter is sometimes enough, but often it is not.

1. Document move-out, termination, your current mailing address, and where deposit notices should be sent
2. Send a clear deposit-due notice after the correct Florida deadline passes
3. Escalate with the statute, the missing or late claim notice, objection facts, and your proof
4. Send a final demand before deciding whether to file in County Court

Step 1 is preventive. It helps make the address, timing, and deposit-response record clear before the dispute hardens.