Florida Lockouts, Utility Shutoffs and Prohibited Landlord Practices

No. Under Fla. Stat. s. 83.67, a Florida landlord may not cut off a tenant's utilities, change the locks, or otherwise keep the tenant out of the unit, and the section contains no exception for unpaid rent. A landlord who does it is liable "for actual and consequential damages or 3 months' rent, whichever is greater, and costs, including attorney's fees" (s. 83.67(6)).

What s. 83.67 prohibits

• Utility shutoffs, s. 83.67(1). A landlord "shall not cause, directly or indirectly, the termination or interruption of any utility service furnished the tenant, including, but not limited to, water, heat, light, electricity, gas, elevator, garbage collection, or refrigeration, whether or not the utility service is under the control of, or payment is made by, the landlord."
• Lockouts, s. 83.67(2). A landlord "shall not prevent the tenant from gaining reasonable access to the dwelling unit by any means, including, but not limited to, changing the locks or using any bootlock or similar device."
• Removing the building or the belongings, s. 83.67(5). A landlord shall not remove the outside doors, locks, roof, walls, or windows "except for purposes of maintenance, repair, or replacement," and shall not remove the tenant's personal property unless that happens "after surrender, abandonment, recovery of possession of the dwelling unit due to the death of the last remaining tenant in accordance with s. 83.59(3)(d), or a lawful eviction."
• Servicemember discrimination (s. 83.67(3)) and one U.S. flag (s. 83.67(4)). Same section, so the same remedy applies to "any provision of this section."

What the tenant can recover

The greater of actual and consequential damages or 3 months' rent, plus costs including attorney's fees (s. 83.67(6)). "Subsequent or repeated violations that are not contemporaneous with the initial violation shall be subject to separate awards of damages." A violation "constitutes irreparable harm for the purposes of injunctive relief" (s. 83.67(7)), and the remedies "are not exclusive" (s. 83.67(8)). The section does not say which monthly rent figure is used for the 3-month measure; that is a question for a Florida attorney.

The exceptions, as printed

The only printed carve-out is in s. 83.67(5): removing doors, locks, roof, walls, or windows "for purposes of maintenance, repair, or replacement," and removing belongings after surrender, abandonment, a lawful eviction, or the last tenant's death. Subsections (1) and (2) have no emergency exception, no exception for unpaid rent, and none for a tenant you think has left. Two nearby rules are about different things:

• Entry is not lockout. Fla. Stat. s. 83.53(2) says the landlord may enter "at any time for the protection or preservation of the premises" and in an emergency. That permits you to go in. It does not permit you to change the locks or turn off the water.
• Possession needs one of four routes. Under Fla. Stat. s. 83.59(3) you recover possession only through a court action, surrender, abandonment, or the death of the last remaining tenant (with conditions). Abandonment is presumed if the tenant is absent for one-half the time for periodic rental payments, but "this presumption does not apply if the rent is current or the tenant has notified the landlord, in writing, of an intended absence" (s. 83.59(3)(c)).

A lease clause will not rescue a lockout: a provision is void and unenforceable to the extent that it "[p]urports to waive or preclude the rights, remedies, or requirements set forth in this part" (Fla. Stat. s. 83.47(1)(a)).

The lawful order of steps

1. Serve the notice the statute requires: the 3-day notice for unpaid rent (s. 83.56(3)) or the 7-day notices for other noncompliance (s. 83.56(2)), per Fla. Stat. s. 83.56.
2. If the tenant stays, file for possession in the county court where the unit sits (s. 83.59(2)).
3. After judgment, the clerk issues a writ to the sheriff, who puts you in possession "after 24 hours' notice conspicuously posted on the premises" (Fla. Stat. s. 83.62(1)).
4. Only after the sheriff executes the writ may you change the locks and remove property. The sheriff may charge a reasonable hourly rate to stand by, paid by the person who asks (s. 83.62(2)).

Filing fees and how the clerk and sheriff handle service are local practice outside Chapter 83; ask the clerk of court.

Retaliation, s. 83.64 (as printed)

Fla. Stat. s. 83.64(1) makes it "unlawful for a landlord to discriminatorily increase a tenant's rent or decrease services to a tenant, or to bring or threaten to bring an action for possession or other civil action, primarily because the landlord is retaliating against the tenant." Listed examples include a complaint to a code-enforcement agency, joining a tenant organization, a complaint to the landlord under s. 83.56(1), or exercising fair-housing rights. The tenant must have acted in good faith. A tenant may raise retaliation as a defense in a possession action (s. 83.64(2)), but the section "does not apply if the landlord proves that the eviction is for good cause," such as good-faith action for nonpayment or a lease violation (s. 83.64(3)).

Checklist before touching a lock or a utility

• Is a court judgment and sheriff's writ in hand, or has the tenant surrendered or abandoned the unit (s. 83.59(3)(b)-(c))? If not, do not change locks or remove property.
• Is this repair work on a door, lock, roof, wall, or window? Document the repair purpose and the dates.
• Did the tenant recently complain to you or a code agency? Review s. 83.64 before any rent increase, service cut, or filing.

Common mistakes

• Shutting off water or power "to motivate" a late payer. The statute prints no exception.
• Swapping the locks because the tenant "seems gone" without the s. 83.59(3)(c) conditions.
• Putting a bootlock or padlock on the door or removing belongings before the writ is executed.
• Treating the 3-month figure as a cap. It is a floor ("whichever is greater").

If a tenant says they were locked out, or you are unsure whether a step is allowed, a Florida landlord-tenant attorney is the person to ask.

Sources

• Fla. Stat. s. 83.47 — Florida Senate, 2026 Florida Statutes
• Fla. Stat. s. 83.53 — Florida Senate, 2026 Florida Statutes
• Fla. Stat. s. 83.56 — Florida Senate, 2026 Florida Statutes
• Fla. Stat. s. 83.59 — Florida Senate, 2026 Florida Statutes
• Fla. Stat. s. 83.62 — Florida Senate, 2026 Florida Statutes
• Fla. Stat. s. 83.64 — Florida Senate, 2026 Florida Statutes
• Fla. Stat. s. 83.67 — Florida Senate, 2026 Florida Statutes

Related guides

• Florida Security Deposit Law: The 15-Day / 30-Day Timeline (2026)
• Florida Notice of Intent to Claim a Security Deposit (Template)
• What Happens if a Florida Landlord Misses the 30-Day Deposit Deadline
• Florida 3-Day Notice to Pay Rent or Vacate: Form, Counting, Service
• Florida 7-Day Notice: Cure vs. Unconditional Quit
• Did Florida Change the 3-Day Notice to 5 Days? (SB 716, 2026)
• Can Florida Landlords Send Legal Notices by E-mail? (s. 83.505)
• Florida Landlord Entry Rules: Notice Before Entering (s. 83.53)
• Florida Month-to-Month Lease: Notice to End the Tenancy (s. 83.57)
• Florida Landlord Repair Duty and the Tenant's Rent Defense (s. 83.60)
• Florida Preempts Local Landlord-Tenant Rules: What s. 83.425 Covers

Informational only, not legal advice. Statute text checked against the 2026 Florida Statutes (Chapter 83, Part II) on October 4, 2026. Statutes change every legislative session and a court may read them differently than a summary does; for a dispute, an eviction or anything expensive to get wrong, talk to a Florida landlord-tenant attorney.