Renting or Lending a Jet Ski in Florida: What Renters, Owners and Guest Drivers Should Know

A jet ski weekend in Florida usually involves more than one driver: a rental for the visiting cousins, or your own PWC passed around the sandbar. Florida law treats those situations differently, and the difference matters if somebody gets hurt.

If you rent a jet ski

A business that advertises and rents vessels without a licensed captain is a livery, and it has to follow s. 327.54. Among other things, a livery:

• may not rent a motorized vessel to anyone under 18;
• must give pre-ride instruction (how the craft handles, right-of-way, local hazards, emergencies) and have you sign a statement about it;
• must have a written agreement with your name, address, date of birth, number of people aboard and return time;
• must check that you have the boating safety documents the law requires, if they apply to you;
• must carry its own insurance of at least $500,000 per person and $1 million per event, and either insure the renter the same way or offer the renter coverage.

If you decline the renter coverage, the law requires you to sign an acknowledgment that you may not have other insurance for damage or injuries you cause and may be personally liable. Read it before you sign. Then ask your agent whether any of your own policies would respond while you operate a rented PWC.

The boating safety ID

Anyone born on or after January 1, 1988 who operates a vessel with a motor of 10 horsepower or more must carry photo ID and a Florida boating safety education ID card or another accepted document (s. 327.395). A temporary certificate from an approved exam is valid for 90 days, which is how many visitors comply (FWC). There are a few exemptions, for example when an adult card holder 18 or older is aboard and responsible for the operation.

If you lend your own jet ski

An owner who lends a PWC to someone he or she knows is not a livery under the statute, so none of the rental insurance rules apply. That also means no rental policy stands between your guest and an injury claim. The questions move to your own coverage.

• Florida makes it unlawful for an owner to knowingly let anyone under 14 operate a PWC (s. 327.39).
• Everyone aboard must wear a non-inflatable, Coast Guard-approved life jacket, the operator must attach the kill-switch lanyard, and no one may ride from half an hour after sunset to half an hour before sunrise.
• If your guest was born on or after January 1, 1988, he or she needs the boating ID too.
• Ask your agent whether your policy covers other operators you allow, injuries to passengers, and damage your guest causes to another boat or a dock.

Why it matters

In 2025, personal watercraft were 17% of registered vessels in Florida but were involved in 23% of reportable boating accidents (FWC). Most of those were collisions. A short safety talk and a quick look at your policy before the keys change hands go a long way.

Coverage depends on each policy. Talk with a licensed agent about yours.