Florida Statutes

Fla. Stat. § 713.245 (2025)

Conditional payment bond.

✓ 2025 Florida Statutes — current through the 2025 Regular Session

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713.245 Conditional payment bond.—

(1) Notwithstanding any provisions of ss. 713.23 and 713.24 to the contrary, if the contractor’s written contractual obligation to pay lienors is expressly conditioned upon and limited to the payments made by the owner to the contractor, the duty of the surety to pay lienors will be coextensive with the duty of the contractor to pay, if the following provisions are complied with:

(a) The bond is listed in the notice of commencement for the project as a conditional payment bond and is recorded together with the notice of commencement for the project prior to commencement of the project.

(b) The words “conditional payment bond” are contained in the title of the bond at the top of the front page.

(c) The bond contains on the front page, in at least 10-point type, the statement: THIS BOND ONLY COVERS CLAIMS OF SUBCONTRACTORS, SUB-SUBCONTRACTORS, SUPPLIERS, AND LABORERS TO THE EXTENT THE CONTRACTOR HAS BEEN PAID FOR THE LABOR, SERVICES, OR MATERIALS PROVIDED BY SUCH PERSONS. THIS BOND DOES NOT PRECLUDE YOU FROM SERVING A NOTICE TO OWNER OR FILING A CLAIM OF LIEN ON THIS PROJECT.

(2) Except as specified in this section, all bonds issued under this section must conform to the requirements of s. 713.23(1)(a), (b), (f), and (4). No action shall be instituted or prosecuted against the contractor or the surety after 1 year from the date the lien is transferred to the bond.

(3) The owner’s property is not exempt from liens filed under this part. All lienors must comply with the provisions of this part to preserve and perfect those lien rights.

(4) Within 90 days after a claim of lien is recorded for labor, services, or materials for which the contractor has been paid, the owner or the contractor may record a notice of bond as specified in s. 713.23(2), together with a copy of the bond and a sworn statement in substantially the following form:

CERTIFICATE OF PAYMENT
TO THE CONTRACTOR

TO: Lienor (name and address from claim of lien)

Contractor (name and address)

Surety (name and address)

Under penalties of perjury, the undersigned certifies that the bond recorded with this certificate conforms with s. 713.245, F.S., that the bond is in full force and effect, and that the contractor has been paid $ for the labor, services, and materials described in the Claim of Lien filed by dated , (year) , and recorded , (year) , in Official Records Book at Page of the Public Records of County, Florida.

Dated this day of , (year) .

(Owner)

(Address)

STATE OF FLORIDA

COUNTY OF

Sworn to (or affirmed) and subscribed before me this day of , (year) , by (name of person making statement) .

(Signature of Notary Public - State of Florida)

(Print, Type, or Stamp Commissioned Name of Notary Public)

Personally Known OR Produced Identification

Type of Identification Produced

(Contractor)

(Address)

STATE OF FLORIDA

COUNTY OF

Sworn to (or affirmed) and subscribed before me this day of , (year) , by (name of person making statement) .

(Signature of Notary Public - State of Florida)

(Print, Type, or Stamp Commissioned Name of Notary Public)

Personally Known OR Produced Identification

Type of Identification Produced

Any notice of bond recorded more than 90 days after the recording of the claim of lien shall have no force or effect as to that lien unless the owner, the contractor and the surety all sign the notice of bond.

(5) The clerk shall serve a copy of the notice, the bond, and the certificate on the contractor, the surety, and the lienor; certify to the service on the face of the notice, the bond, and the certificate; record the notice, the bond, and the certificate; and collect a fee in accordance with s. 713.23(2).

(6) The contractor may join in a certificate of payment to the contractor at any time by recording a sworn statement substantially in the following form:

JOINDER IN CERTIFICATE OF PAYMENT

TO: Owner (name and address from certificate of payment)

Lienor (name and address from claim of lien)

Surety (name and address)

The undersigned joins in the Certificate of Payment to the Contractor recorded on , (year) , in Official Records Book at Page of the Public Records of County, Florida, and certifies that the facts stated in the Certificate of Payment to the Contractor are true and correct.

Dated this day of , (year) .

(Name)

(Address)

STATE OF FLORIDA

COUNTY OF

Sworn to (or affirmed) and subscribed before me this day of , (year) , by (name of person making statement) .

(Signature of Notary Public - State of Florida)

(Print, Type, or Stamp Commissioned Name of Notary Public)

Personally Known OR Produced Identification

Type of Identification Produced

(7) The clerk shall serve the joinder in certificate of payment on the owner, the surety, and the lienor; certify to the service on the face of the joinder; record the joinder; and collect a fee in accordance with s. 713.23(2).

(8) If the contractor disputes the certificate of payment to the contractor, the contractor must record, not later than 15 days after the date the clerk certifies service of the certificate, a sworn statement in substantially the following form:

NOTICE OF CONTEST OF PAYMENT

TO: Owner (name and address from certificate of payment)

Lienor (name and address from claim of lien)

Surety (name and address)

Under penalties of perjury, the undersigned certifies that the contractor has not been paid or has only been paid $ for the labor, services, and materials described in the Certificate of Payment to the Contractor recorded in Official Records Book at Page of the Public Records of County, Florida.

Dated this day of , (year) .

(Name)

(Address)

STATE OF FLORIDA

COUNTY OF

Sworn to (or affirmed) and subscribed before me this day of , (year) , by (name of person making statement) .

(Signature of Notary Public - State of Florida)

(Print, Type, or Stamp Commissioned Name of Notary Public)

Personally Known OR Produced Identification

Type of Identification Produced

(9) The clerk shall serve a copy of the notice of contest of payment on the owner, the lienor, and the surety; certify service on the face of the notice; record the notice; and collect a fee in accordance with s. 713.23(2).

(10) If the contractor has signed the certificate of payment to the contractor or the joinder in the certificate or the contractor fails to record a notice of contest of payment within 15 days after the date the clerk certifies service of a certificate of payment to the contractor signed by the owner, the lien shall transfer to the bond to the extent of payment specified in the certificate of payment to the contractor. To the extent the lien exceeds the amount specified in the certificate of payment to the contractor, such amount shall remain as a lien on the owner’s property. The surety may assert all claims or defenses of the owner regarding the validity of the claim of lien or of the contractor regarding the amount due the lienor.

(11) If the notice of contest of payment specifies that the contractor has been paid a portion of the amount due the lienor, the lien shall transfer to the bond to the extent of the payment specified in the notice of contest of payment. To the extent the lien exceeds the amount specified in the notice of contest of payment, such amount shall remain as a lien on the owner’s property. The surety may assert all claims or defenses of the owner regarding the validity of the claim of lien or of the contractor regarding the amount due the lienor.

(12) If there are any material misstatements of fact made by the owner or the contractor in any certificate of payment to the contractor, or by the contractor in any notice of contest of payment, the person making the material misstatement is guilty of a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. The penalties apply individually and to the business entity if the false certificate is signed in a representative capacity.

(13) The certificate of payment to the contractor and the notice of contest of payment must be signed by the owner or the contractor individually if she or he is a natural person, by the general partner if the owner or the contractor is a limited partnership, by a partner if the owner or the contractor is a general partnership, by the president or a vice president if the owner or the contractor is a corporation, or by any authorized agent if the owner or the contractor is any other type of business entity.

(14) In an action to enforce a lien, the owner shall not be considered the prevailing party solely because the lien is transferred to a conditional payment bond after the action to enforce the lien is brought.

History.—s. 13, ch. 90-109; s. 9, ch. 92-286; s. 3, ch. 93-99; s. 58, ch. 95-211; s. 814, ch. 97-102; s. 16, ch. 98-246; s. 9, ch. 2001-211.

Arrestable Offenses under F.S. 713.245

M = misdemeanor · F = felony · degree: F=1st S=2nd T=3rd

§713.245(12)FRAUD-FALSE STATEMENTFALSE STMT MATRL FACT CONTRACTOR CERT OF PYMTF · 3rd

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 9 cases, 1998–2010 · leading case: WMS Const., Inc. v. Palm Springs Mile Assoc., Ltd., 762 So. 2d 973 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000).

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WMS Const., Inc. v. Palm Springs Mile Assoc., Ltd., 762 So. 2d 973 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000). · cites it 18× “NOTES [1] Governed by § 713.245, Fla. Stat. (1997). It is also referred to as a "pay-when-paid" bond.”

North Am. Specialty Ins. v. Hughes, 705 So. 2d 616 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998). · cites it 17× “The payment bonds furnished by the surety to the contractor contained the legend specified in section 713.245, Florida Statutes, for conditional payment bonds: This bond only covers claims of subcontractors, sub-subcontractors, suppliers, and laborers to the extent the…”

Everett Painting Co., Inc. v. Padula & Wadsworth Constr., Inc., 856 So. 2d 1059 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003). · cites it 6× “Under section 713.245, Florida Statutes (1997), a surety may limit its liability by including conditional payment language in the bond, if the contract between the contractor and a subcontractor *1062 includes a similar limitation.”

WMS Constr., Inc. v. North Am. Specialty Ins. Co., 929 So. 2d 1 (Fla. 3d DCA 2005). · cites it 20× “2000), holding that the payment bond issued by NAS was in fact a conditional payment bond pursuant to section 713.245, Florida Statutes (1997) 1 , and not, as the trial court found, an unconditional bond.”

North Am. Spec. Ins. v. Bergeron Dev., 745 So. 2d 359 (Fla. 4th DCA 1999). · cites it 6× “The Noland Construction defense states that "Bergeron does not include any allegations that establish that Bergeron timely perfected its claim of lien or timely prosecuted its claim of lien, or that the claim of lien has been transferred to the Conditional Payment Bond, all as…”

Universal Concrete Prods. Corp. v. Turner Constr. Co., 595 F.3d 527 (4th Cir. 2010). · cites it 2× “1990), superseded by statute in part, Fla. Stat. § 713.245 (2009), as recognized in, WMS Constr.”

Garrido v. Nat'l Union Fire Ins., 891 So. 2d 1091 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004). · cites it 5× “The owner then filed a notice of bond, issued pursuant to section 713.245, Florida Statutes. When National Union refused to pay, Garrido filed suit in Broward, where National Union’s representatives are located.”

Phoenix Walls, Inc. v. Liberty Pasadena, LLC, 980 So. 2d 1286 (Fla. 2d DCA 2008). · cites it 2× “[3] Noting that the only claim of lien thus remaining is the December 6, 2006, claim of lien, the order concludes that this claim of lien was "transferred to the Payment Bond referenced in the Notice of Bond recorded at Official Records Book 15554, Pages 622-626 of the Public…”

Pena-Alum Glass & Mirror v. Nationwide Terminals, Inc., 864 So. 2d 461 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003). · cites it 2× “The bond bore the legend required for a conditional payment bond under section 713.245, Florida Statutes (1999).”

— 713.245(1) — 2 cases

WMS Const., Inc. v. Palm Springs Mile Assoc., Ltd., 762 So. 2d 973 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000). “NOTES [1] Governed by § 713.245, Fla. Stat. (1997). It is also referred to as a "pay-when-paid" bond.”

North Am. Specialty Ins. v. Hughes, 705 So. 2d 616 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998). “The payment bonds furnished by the surety to the contractor contained the legend specified in section 713.245, Florida Statutes, for conditional payment bonds: This bond only covers claims of subcontractors, sub-subcontractors, suppliers, and laborers to the extent the…”

— 713.245(2) — 1 case

— 713.245(3) — 1 case

WMS Const., Inc. v. Palm Springs Mile Assoc., Ltd., 762 So. 2d 973 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000). “NOTES [1] Governed by § 713.245, Fla. Stat. (1997). It is also referred to as a "pay-when-paid" bond.”

— 713.245(4) — 2 cases

WMS Constr., Inc. v. North Am. Specialty Ins. Co., 929 So. 2d 1 (Fla. 3d DCA 2005). “2000), holding that the payment bond issued by NAS was in fact a conditional payment bond pursuant to section 713.245, Florida Statutes (1997) 1 , and not, as the trial court found, an unconditional bond.”

Garrido v. Nat'l Union Fire Ins., 891 So. 2d 1091 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004). “The owner then filed a notice of bond, issued pursuant to section 713.245, Florida Statutes. When National Union refused to pay, Garrido filed suit in Broward, where National Union’s representatives are located.”

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