What Can I Do About a Florida Landlord Withholding My Deposit and Filing False Police Reports?

Attorney Answer

You are actually describing three separate problems, and Florida law gives you real tools for at least two of them right now, even without more details.

On the security deposit. Florida Statute § 83.49 controls this closely. Once you move out, your landlord generally has 15 days to return your deposit if no claim is being made against it, or 30 days to send you written notice by certified mail of the intent to keep some or all of it, along with the specific reasons. If your landlord does not send that notice within the 30-day window, the right to keep any of it is generally lost. If a claim notice is sent, you then have 15 days from receiving it to send a written objection, so watch your mail, including certified mail, closely.

On the landlord entering or being on the property. Florida Statute § 83.53(2) requires reasonable notice before your landlord enters to make repairs, and the statute defines reasonable notice for that purpose as notice given at least 24 hours before the entry, with the entry itself between 7:30 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. (as of publication). The statute lets a landlord enter without that notice only in the narrow situations it lists — with your consent, in an emergency, when you unreasonably withhold consent, or when you have been absent from the unit for half a rental period or longer. If your landlord is showing up unannounced or without consent outside those exceptions, that is a violation of your rights as a tenant, and every instance should be documented with dates, times, and what happened.

On the false police reports. Knowingly filing a false report with law enforcement is potentially a crime in Florida, separate from any landlord-tenant issue. Keep a record of each report, including the date, what the landlord claimed, and how it was resolved.

What to do now

1. Send your landlord a written demand for your deposit, or for the required itemized notice, referencing the statutory deadlines. 2. Document every unauthorized entry and every police contact in writing, as it happens. 3. Keep copies of your lease, move-out condition photos, and all communications. 4. If your landlord doesn't comply, small claims court is a realistic option for the deposit dispute.

Because timing matters so much here, especially the 15-day window to object once a claim notice arrives, please move quickly and consider having a landlord-tenant attorney review your documents. This is general legal information, not legal advice. A Florida landlord-tenant attorney can review your lease and correspondence and advise you on next steps.