Florida's primary storage statute is Fla. Stat. § 790.174 - "Safe storage of firearms required." It requires anyone who stores or leaves a loaded...
Reviewed by Will Luker, Founder of CCW Hub. USCCA Training Counselor, USCCA Certified Instructor, NRA Certified Instructor, Law Enforcement.
Florida's primary storage statute is Fla. Stat. § 790.174 - "Safe storage of firearms required." It requires anyone who stores or leaves a loaded firearm on premises under their control, who knows or reasonably should know that a minor under 16 is likely to gain access without lawful permission, to keep the firearm in a securely locked box or container, in a location a reasonable person would believe to be secure, or secured with a trigger lock - except when the firearm is on the person's body or close enough to be retrieved as quickly as if it were carried. Violation is a second-degree misdemeanor if the minor gains access, possesses or exhibits the firearm in a public place, or brandishes it in a rude, careless, angry, or threatening manner under § 790.10. The penalty does not require death or injury; the minor's public possession or improper exhibition is enough. An unlawful-entry defense applies.
Florida does not impose a general adult safe-storage requirement. There is no Florida statute requiring adults to lock firearms, store them in a safe, store ammunition separately, or keep firearms inaccessible to other adults in the home. The state's storage rules are focused entirely on minor access. Layered on top, federal law (18 U.S.C. § 922(z)) requires every federal firearms licensee to provide a "secure gun storage or safety device" with each handgun sold to a non-licensed buyer. That federal point-of-sale rule applies in Florida as in every state.
For Florida concealed weapon or firearm license (CWFL) holders, no storage condition attaches to the license. The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services does not inspect home storage. The license governs how you carry, not how you store.
Section 790.174, titled "Safe storage of firearms required," is the operative storage statute in Florida. It operates in three subsections: a conduct rule (subsection (1)), a penalty provision (subsection (2)), and a definition of "minor" (subsection (3)).
Subsection (1) imposes the storage duty. A person who stores or leaves a loaded firearm on a premise under his or her control, and who knows or reasonably should know that a minor is likely to gain access without lawful permission of the minor's parent or person having charge of the minor, must do one of the following:
The statute carves out an explicit exception when the firearm is "on his or her body or within such close proximity thereto that he or she can retrieve and use it as easily and quickly as if he or she carried it on his or her body." A loaded holstered firearm, or one on a nightstand within arm's reach while the owner sleeps, is not subject to the locked-storage requirement. The statute targets the moment when the responsible adult is not present to control access.
Three elements must align: (a) the firearm is loaded, (b) the storer controls the premises, and (c) the storer knows or reasonably should know that a minor under 16 is likely to gain access without parental permission. An unloaded firearm is not within § 790.174. A loaded firearm on premises where no minor is reasonably likely to be present does not trigger the duty. The "reasonably should know" standard is objective: a parent of a minor under 16 in the home is on constructive notice; an adult who regularly hosts grandchildren is on similar notice.
Subsection (2) makes a violation a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable under § 775.082 (up to 60 days in jail) or § 775.083 (up to a $500 fine), if the storer fails to store the firearm in the required manner and as a result a minor gains access without lawful permission and possesses or exhibits the firearm:
Two structural points are easy to miss. First, the offense is not triggered merely by the minor obtaining the firearm - the minor must also take it into a public place or brandish it improperly. A minor who finds an unsecured loaded firearm at home, handles it discreetly, and puts it back may produce no § 790.174(2) liability for the storer. Second, the statute does not require death or serious bodily injury. A minor who carries the firearm to a park or points it at another child in anger generates the offense even if no one is hurt.
The closing sentence of subsection (2) carves out an unlawful-entry exception: "This subsection does not apply if the minor obtains the firearm as a result of an unlawful entry by any person." A child who breaks into a locked safe or otherwise commits a separate offense to reach the firearm cuts off the storer's liability.
Subsection (3) defines "minor" as "any person under the age of 16." This is 16, not 18. A 16- or 17-year-old in the home does not trigger § 790.174. Other Florida statutes (§ 790.17 furnishing-to-minor and § 790.22 minor-possession) use 18 as the cutoff. Section 790.174 alone uses 16. The storage duty applies to households with persons under 16 likely to gain access; it does not apply to a household with only a 17-year-old child.
Section 790.175 imposes two distinct warning duties on Florida firearm sellers.
Written warning at point of sale (§ 790.175(1)). Upon any retail commercial sale or retail transfer of a firearm, the seller or transferor must deliver a written warning to the purchaser or transferee in block letters not less than 1/4 inch in height:
"IT IS UNLAWFUL, AND PUNISHABLE BY IMPRISONMENT AND FINE, FOR ANY ADULT TO STORE OR LEAVE A FIREARM IN ANY PLACE WITHIN THE REACH OR EASY ACCESS OF A MINOR UNDER 18 YEARS OF AGE OR TO KNOWINGLY SELL OR OTHERWISE TRANSFER OWNERSHIP OR POSSESSION OF A FIREARM TO A MINOR OR A PERSON OF UNSOUND MIND."
Posted counter sign (§ 790.175(2)). Any retail or wholesale outlet that sells firearms must conspicuously post the same warning text at each purchase counter in block letters not less than 1 inch in height. Penalty under § 790.175(3) for knowing violation of either requirement is a second-degree misdemeanor.
Note that the warning text references "a minor under 18," broader than § 790.174's under-16 trigger - a deliberate drafting choice giving the public-notice text a wider age scope than the criminal statute it summarizes, presumably to align with the under-18 furnishing rule in § 790.17 and the under-18 possession rule in § 790.22. The buyer has no statutory acknowledgment-signing duty, no take-home brochure requirement, and no continuing post-sale obligation derived from § 790.175 itself; the buyer's separate storage duty is set by § 790.174.
Section 790.115 generally prohibits firearm possession at a school-sponsored event, on school property, or on a school bus. Subsection (2)(c)(2) layers a storage-related rule: a person who stores or leaves a loaded firearm within the reach or easy access of a minor who obtains it and willfully and knowingly possesses it on school property in violation of subsection (2)(c)(1) commits a second-degree misdemeanor, except that the offense does not apply if the firearm was stored or left in a securely locked box or container, in a location a reasonable person would have believed to be secure, or secured with a firearm-mounted push-button combination lock or trigger lock. The exception also applies when the minor obtains the firearm by unlawful entry, and to law-enforcement officers and military personnel on duty.
This sub-statute tracks § 790.174's compliant-methods structure but adds a school-property-specific consequence chain. A Florida adult whose loaded firearm is taken by a minor who carries it onto school grounds faces both § 790.174 liability (if access was reasonably foreseeable and the minor is under 16) and § 790.115(2)(c)(2) liability (regardless of the minor's age, when the minor brings it to school).
Sections 790.17 and 790.22 are not storage statutes, but both are closely related when a poorly stored firearm reaches a minor's hands. Section 790.17(1) makes it a first-degree misdemeanor to sell, hire, barter, lend, transfer, or give a minor under 18 any dirk, electric weapon, or other weapon (other than an ordinary pocketknife) without the parent's or guardian's permission. Section 790.17(2)(a) elevates the offense to a third-degree felony for knowingly or willfully selling or transferring a firearm to a minor under 18, except that a parent or guardian may transfer ownership of a firearm to a minor with permission; the parent or guardian must maintain possession except as permitted under § 790.22.
Section 790.22(3) prohibits a minor under 18 from possessing a firearm, other than an unloaded firearm at the minor's home, except in narrow circumstances (lawful hunting at age 16 or above; lawful hunting under 16 with adult supervision; lawful marksmanship or recreational shooting; transport to or from such activities, unloaded). Section 790.22(4)(a) makes it a third-degree felony for a parent or guardian or other adult responsible for the minor's welfare to knowingly and willfully permit the minor to possess a firearm in violation of subsection (3).
The combined implication for storage: a parent who stores a loaded firearm where a 17-year-old child has ready access has not violated § 790.174 (the child is over 16) but has potentially violated § 790.22(4)(a) if the parent knowingly permits the resulting possession. Section 790.174 covers the under-16 universe with a storage standard; § 790.22 covers the under-18 universe with a knowing-permission standard. A passive "transfer of possession" by failing to prevent a minor from taking the firearm can also support a § 790.17 charge.
Federal law requires every FFL dealer to provide a "secure gun storage or safety device" with each handgun transferred to a non-licensed individual. This is a one-time event at sale. Every new handgun sold by a Florida FFL ships with a cable lock, trigger lock, or comparable device. The federal regulation at 27 C.F.R. Part 478 requires FFL applicants to certify that compatible devices will be available at every place where firearms are sold to non-licensed individuals.
The federal rule applies in Florida exactly as in every other state. It does not reach the buyer's home use of the device after leaving the store. A Florida buyer who removes the cable lock when arriving home and stores the handgun loaded on a nightstand has not violated federal law - though the buyer has potentially violated § 790.174 if a minor under 16 is reasonably likely to gain access. FFL recordkeeping under 27 C.F.R. Part 478 covers acquisitions and dispositions, not storage at the buyer's home; there is no federal counterpart of "registration" for stored firearms.
A Florida CWFL holder who carries lawfully under § 790.06 (or who carries without a license under § 790.01 constitutional carry) may still encounter prohibited locations under § 790.06(12) (courthouses, polling places, schools, secured airport areas, certain government meetings, establishments serving alcohol on premises) and may need to leave the firearm in a vehicle while inside. Florida does not impose a specific in-vehicle storage method when the carrier briefly steps away, but practical risk management is to lock the vehicle, keep the firearm out of plain view, and for extended absences use a vehicle-rated lockbox anchored to the seat frame or vehicle structure. If a minor under 16 is reasonably likely to encounter the vehicle in your absence, § 790.174's storage duty attaches to vehicle storage as well as to home storage; the "secure" standard is location-agnostic. See VEHICLE_CARRY and TRANSPORT for further detail.
Florida has no statute prescribing how firearms must be stored or transferred after the owner's death. Standard estate administration applies: the personal representative takes constructive possession as estate property and either transfers to a qualified heir under the Florida Probate Code or sells through a licensed dealer. During administration, the representative should store firearms securely if the residence remains accessible to family members including minors. For incapacity scenarios - guardianship under Chapter 744 or a risk-protection order under § 790.401 - firearms must be relinquished to a third party per the applicable order. The custodian's storage duty arises from the order, not from § 790.174.
Even where § 790.174's criminal threshold is not met, a Florida firearm owner whose stored firearm causes injury may face civil liability. Florida tort law recognizes negligence claims against firearm owners who fail to take reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harm, particularly where a minor accesses a firearm and discharges it. Insurers writing homeowner policies in Florida increasingly inquire about firearm storage practices and may exclude coverage for incidents involving improperly stored firearms. A Florida owner relying solely on the criminal-statute threshold has not addressed civil exposure.
The following recommendations are not Florida law. They reflect general firearm-safety best practice taught by NRA-certified, USCCA-certified, and Florida Department of Agriculture-authorized CWFL instructors. A Florida owner who ignores all of these recommendations violates no statute, provided no minor under 16 gains access under § 790.174 and the household otherwise complies with §§ 790.17, 790.22, and 790.115.
In a home with minors under 16, regular minor visitors, or grandchildren visits:
For an adults-only home with no minor visitors: Florida law does not require any particular storage method. A nightstand pistol is lawful. Practical risk management still suggests locked storage when the home is unattended.
As of the 2025 Florida Legislature regular session, no enacted change has materially altered § 790.174 or § 790.175. Bills proposing a general adult safe-storage requirement or a child-access prevention law expanded to under-18 have been introduced in recent sessions and have not advanced.
Local Florida ordinances are constrained by the state preemption statute, § 790.33, which preempts the entire field of firearm and ammunition regulation and authorizes civil penalties against local officials who knowingly violate the rule. A local "safe-storage ordinance" imposing storage rules on lawful owners would face preemption challenge under § 790.33.
| Statute | Subject |
|---|---|
| Fla. Stat. § 790.174 | Safe storage of firearms required (the operative storage statute) |
| Fla. Stat. § 790.174(1) | Conduct rule - locked container, reasonable-secure location, or trigger lock |
| Fla. Stat. § 790.174(2) | Penalty trigger - minor public possession or improper exhibition; second-degree misdemeanor |
| Fla. Stat. § 790.174(3) | Definition of "minor" as person under 16 |
| Fla. Stat. § 790.175(1) | Written 1/4-inch warning at point of sale |
| Fla. Stat. § 790.175(2) | Posted 1-inch counter warning sign |
| Fla. Stat. § 790.175(3) | Penalty for warning-requirement violation |
| Fla. Stat. § 790.10 | Improper exhibition of dangerous weapons or firearms (cross-referenced in § 790.174(2)(b)) |
| Fla. Stat. § 790.115(2)(c) | School-property storage with minor-access trigger |
| Fla. Stat. § 790.17 | Furnishing weapons or firearms to minors under 18 |
| Fla. Stat. § 790.22(3), (4) | Minor possession of firearms; parental knowing-permission liability |
| Fla. Stat. § 775.082 | Misdemeanor and felony imprisonment grades |
| Fla. Stat. § 775.083 | Misdemeanor and felony fine grades |
| 18 U.S.C. § 922(z) | Federal point-of-sale secure gun storage or safety device requirement |
| 27 C.F.R. Part 478 | Federal regulations implementing the FFL device-availability rule |
Florida law as of the 2025-2026 legislative session imposes a single criminal storage duty: § 790.174's under-16 child-access framework, with the public-possession or improper-exhibition trigger. Section 790.175's dealer warning requirements layer on top, and the federal point-of-sale device rule under 18 U.S.C. § 922(z) applies as in every state. No general adult safe-storage requirement exists in Florida.
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