Florida Notice to Contractor (Public Projects) Form | Free Template Download
Download your Notice to Contractor (Public Projects) Form | Free Template Download | Free Downloadable Template
Get help filing your Florida Preliminary Notice
Florida Notice to Contractor (Public Projects)
This is a Florida Notice to Contractor for use on public works projects. This form can be filled out with a PDF editor or by hand after printing.
This preliminary notice needs to sent by any project participants on a Florida public works project who didn’t contract directly with the prime contractor. Although we recommend that everyone send a preliminary notice, on every project; regardless if required or not. A Florida Notice to Contractor must be either before commencing work on the project, but no later than 45 days after the first date of furnishing labor or materials to the project.
The notice must be sent to the prime contractor by registered, Global Express Guaranteed, or certified mail with proof of delivery. If it is sent within 40 days of first furnishing, it will be deemed served on the contractor when it’s deposited in the mail. If sent after 40 days, it will only be considered served once the contractor actually receives the notice.
Learn more about the Florida Bond Claim rules here.
Required information
The only actual statutory requirement is that the notice include a statement that the claimant intends to “look to the bond for protection.” However, we suggest adding a few more key pieces of information.
- Claimant information
- Prime contractor information
- Hiring party information
- Public entity information
- Surety name
- Description of labor, services, & materials
- Property description
Stuck? Check out How to Make a Florida Payment Bond Claim on a Public Project
Statute
The Florida Notice to Contractor for public projects is governed by Fla. Stat. §255.05(2)(a).
Rules and regulations for sending a Florida Preliminary Notice
To preserve the ability to file a claim against a bond on a public project, a claimant who does not have a direct contract with the prime contractor must furnish the prime contractor with a written notice that he or she intends to look to the bond for protection within 45 days of first furnishing labor and/or materials. This deadline marks the end of that 45 day period.
After completing the Florida Notice to Contractor (Public Projects) Form | Free Template Download, you must deliver it to the appropriate parties required by statute. Notices are typically served on the property owner and, for sub-tier parties, the general contractor. However, depending on the type of notice, it can be helpful to send notices to anyone else who is in charge of your payment, like a lender or surety company on the project.
Others are asking about Florida Preliminary Notice
Lien notice to home owner
The lien is still valid, but if the homeowner was prejudiced by the late delivery of the lien, then the lien can be reduced by the amount of the prejudice . You should consult with an attorney to determine what the next should be under these circumstances.
Can we add an owner to initial NTO if it is passed the 45 days?
If there was no owner listed on the notice to owner, who was it sent to originally? Depending on that, and who ultimately received the notice to owner, you may be OK. You would need to consult with an attorney to determine if the notice to owner was properly done.
You may want to go ahead and send the notice to owner as an amended notice to owner and include the owner. Again, depending on the facts surrounding the first notice to owner, it may not help you to do that, but if you do not send it at all, then it definitely will not help you.
If the first notice to owner was defective for failing to list the owner, it could eliminate your lien rights, especially if the owner is or was prejudiced by this failure. Again, this would require an attorney to review all the documents involved to determine if your lien rights have been affected by this.
Do I need to resend notice of furnishing
Sending an amended/revised preliminary notice (particularly in Florida) comes with some risk. The deadline for preliminary notices is a strict 45 days after first furnishing labor and/or materials to the project. If an amended notice is sent outside of this deadline, it may operate to replace/potentially invalidate the original notice. However, if the proper parties received notice, there may not be any cause for concern.
Under the Florida statute governing notices, Fla. Stat. §713.06(2)(f), "If a lienor has substantially complied with the provisions of paragraphs (a), (b), and (c), errors or ommissions do not prevent the enforcement of a claim against a person who has not been adversely affected by such omission or error."
Thus, as long as the notice was served in a timely fashion and received by the required parties, such an error won't likely operate to invalidate the notice.
For additional reading, see: How to Prepare and Send a Notice to Owner in Florida
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Other forms to use in Florida
Florida County Recorders
Looking to file/record a mechanics lien in Florida? You'll need to get your Florida mechanics lien filed and recorded with the county recorder in the county where the construction project is located. Here is a listing of all county recorders in Florida. Click on any county to find more information about how to get your lien recorded in that county.
Baker
339 E Macclenny Ave # 113
Macclenny, FL 32063
(904) 259-8113
Broward
115 S. Andrews Ave.
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
954-831-4000
Collier
3315 Tamiami Trail East, Ste. 102
Naples, FL 34112
(239) 252-2745
Duval
501 West Adams St, Room 1046
Jacksonville, FL 32202
Phone: (904) 255-2000
Franklin
33 Market Street, Suite 203
Apalachicola, FL 32320
850-653-8861
Gulf
1000 Cecil G. Costin, Sr. Blvd.
Port St. Joe, FL 32456
850.229.6112
Hillsborough
301 N Michigan Ave
Plant City, FL 33563
Phone: 813-276-8100
Lake
550 W. Main St., North Wing, 3rd Floor
Tavares, FL 32778
Phone: (352) 253-2600
Fax: (352) 253-2616
Lee
2115 Second St Floor 2, Administration Building
Fort Meyers, FL 33901
(239) 533 5007
Florida
Madison
125 SW Range Avenue
Madison, FL 32341
Tel: (850) 973 1500
Fax: (850) 973 2059
Florida
Manatee
1115 Manatee Avenue West
Bradenton, FL 34205
(941) 749-1800
Marion
110 Northwest First Ave, Attn: Recording
Ocala, FL 34475
Phone: 352-671-5630
Orange
109 E. Church St. Suite 300
Orlando, FL 32801
Phone: 407-836-5115
Osceola
2 Courthouse Square, #2000
Kissimmee, FL 34741
Phone: (407) 742-3500
Palm Beach
205 N. Dixie Highway, Room 4.2500
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
Phone: (561) 355-2991
Saint Lucie
201 South Indian River Dr
Fort Pierce, FL 34950
(772) 462-6900
Florida
Santa Rosa
6495 Caroline St Suite A
Milton, FL 32570
850-983-1966
Florida
Sarasota
2000 Main St, Attn: Room 103
Sarasota, FL 34237
(941) 861-7436
Florida
Seminole
1750 E Lk Mary Blvd Attn: Recording
Sanford, FL 32773 Land
(407) 665-4410
Florida
Taylor
108 North Jefferson St, Suite 102
Perry, FL 32347
(850) 838-3506
Florida
Wakulla
3056 Crawfordville Hwy
Crawfordville, FL 32327
Phone: 850-926-0905
Washington
1293 Jackson Avenue
Chipley, FL 32428
(850) 638-6289
Fax: (850) 638-6288
Florida