Plate Lookup Florida

By Mohamed SkhiriUpdated November 10, 2026Checked against FLHSMV form HSMV 90510 and its privacy pages

Form HSMV 90510, priced by the record

The Motor Vehicle, Vessel and Mobile Home Records Request, form HSMV 90510, covers Florida records of all three. What stands out is how specific its fee list is:

• Current registration: $0.50 per record.
• Title history printout: $1.00.
• Complete title history with scanned images: $25.00.
• Certification: $3.00 more per record.

Fees are due when you send the request, payable to the Division of Motorist Services. The form cites section 119.0712(2), Florida Statutes, as the law that governs personal information in motor vehicle records, and it repeats the federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act's limits on passing that information on.

Owner details: the exemption rule

FLHSMV's guidance is short: you can get someone else's personal information only if you meet an exemption covered by law. The request has to say which records you want and which federal DPPA exemption matches your reason. The common ones for individuals are a crash or theft, an insurance claim, a court case and a towed vehicle. Without one, a request for an owner's name gets a no.

Your own information is different. You can ask for your own personal information by completing, signing and mailing the same form.

Largo, Destin or anywhere: one statewide record

People often add a city to the search, such as Largo or Destin, as if each town kept its own files. It doesn't. FLHSMV holds the records for every plate in the state, and the same exemption rule applies whether the car is from the Panhandle or Pinellas County. A local tag office handles registrations, not owner lookups, so a question about a car from Destin follows the same statewide rules as one from Tallahassee.

The right move in common Florida situations

After a crash or hit-and-run, call law enforcement with the plate and get the report; officers identify the vehicle, and your insurer works from the report. That's the plate check most drivers actually need, and you don't file it yourself. For a car abandoned on your property, contact local police or a licensed tow company. Before buying a used car, the $1 title history or the $25 version with images tells you more than an owner's name would, and a free VIN decode and recall check covers the rest. Florida also requires a VIN verification for many vehicles arriving from other states; our Florida VIN check guide covers form HSMV 82042.

Is there a free Florida plate lookup?

For owner information, no; the exemption rule applies to everyone. FLHSMV's own Online Driver License Check is free, but it covers licenses, not plates. So be wary of any website promising Florida owner names for free: a site offering that is either selling general vehicle data or something it can't lawfully get.

Florida plate lookup FAQ