Reference guide

Florida DBPR food truck & caterer inspection guide.

What the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation actually tracks, how inspections work, what the violation categories mean, and how to read an inspection record on any licensed mobile food vendor or caterer in the state.

What DBPR is and what it regulates

The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) is the state agency that licenses and inspects food service businesses in Florida. Within DBPR, the Division of Hotels and Restaurants handles mobile food vendors, caterers, and other non-traditional food operations.

Two license types matter for the food truck and catering world:

License type 2014 (MFDV): Mobile Food Dispensing Vehicle. This is the food truck license. A vehicle equipped to prepare and serve food to the public, operating from varying locations.
License type 2013 (CATR): Caterer. A business that prepares food at a licensed commissary and transports it to events for service.

Both are subject to the same inspection framework under Chapter 509, Florida Statutes and the Food Code adopted by Rule 61C-1.001, Florida Administrative Code. A license is not a one-time stamp of approval. Inspectors conduct ongoing visits throughout the life of the license, and every visit generates a public record.

Types of DBPR inspections

There are four inspection types you will see on a vendor record:

Routine. The scheduled cycle inspection, performed without prior notice. This is the baseline check.
Complaint. Triggered by a consumer complaint, a media report, or a referral from another agency. Focused on the complaint, but inspectors may cite anything they observe.
Follow-up. A return visit specifically to verify that violations from a prior inspection have been corrected. Follow-ups are triggered by high-priority or unresolved violations.
License renewal / application. Performed when a new license is issued or an existing license is renewed.

Inspection frequency

Routine inspections typically occur at least once per licensing year for most mobile food vendors. The cycle can tighten for operations with a recent high-priority violation history. A vendor under an active enforcement action may be re-inspected monthly or more frequently until the issues are resolved.

Florida currently tracks more than 37,000 inspections across 16,000-plus licensed mobile food vendors and caterers. Every one of those records is public and cumulative.

Violation categories and severity

DBPR classifies every violation into one of three tiers. Understanding the tier is critical to reading a record correctly, because one high-priority violation carries more weight than twenty basic ones.

High-priority violations

Direct food safety hazards that contribute to foodborne illness or adulteration. Examples:

Improper cold or hot holding temperatures
Cross-contamination between raw and ready-to-eat foods
Employee hygiene failures (handwashing, bare-hand contact)
Rodent or insect activity in food prep or storage areas
Food from an unsafe or unapproved source
Chemical contamination of food or food-contact surfaces

High-priority violations are the ones that should change a booking decision. Nearly 4,866 of Florida's licensed mobile food vendors have at least one on file. Roughly one in three.

Intermediate violations

Conditions that do not directly cause illness but create the environment for it. Examples:

Inadequate handwashing facilities
Missing or expired food manager certification
Dirty food-contact surfaces
Improper thawing or cooling procedures
Inadequate pest control records

Basic violations

General sanitation, recordkeeping, and maintenance issues that are not immediate food safety hazards. Examples:

Floor, wall, or ceiling maintenance
Lighting or ventilation issues
General premises cleanliness
Missing or illegible labeling on bulk containers

How to read an inspection report

Every DBPR inspection record contains the following fields:

Inspection date: when the inspector visited.
Inspection type: Routine, Complaint, Follow-up, or License Renewal.
Disposition / outcome: Met Inspection Standards, Call Back, Administrative Complaint Recommended, Emergency Order of Suspension, etc.
Violations observed: each one tagged by severity tier and the specific Food Code citation.
Observation narrative: the inspector's note about exactly what was seen (for example, a specific item held at 52 degrees Fahrenheit when 41 or below is required).
Visit ID: a unique inspection identifier for audit and appeal.

A record with an outcome of Met Inspection Standards and no high-priority violations is the baseline. Anything else warrants a closer read.

Enforcement actions

When a vendor fails to correct violations, DBPR has a graduated set of enforcement tools:

Warning. Documented on the record with a required correction timeline.
Call Back / Re-inspection. A mandatory follow-up visit to verify correction. Fees may apply.
Administrative Complaint. Formal citation referred to the DBPR legal division. Can result in a fine and a permanent record entry.
Emergency Order of Suspension. Immediate shutdown of operations, typically for an imminent public health threat. The vendor cannot resume service until a re-inspection clears the suspension.
License revocation. Reserved for repeated serious violations or operating under a suspension.

An Emergency Order of Suspension within the last 24 months is one of the strongest red flags on any vendor record.

How to access DBPR inspection records

There are two ways:

DBPR public portal. Visit myfloridalicense.com, use the Public Records search, filter by license type (2014 for food trucks, 2013 for caterers), and search by business name or license number. Free, raw data, one inspection at a time.
VMScore. Search any Florida food truck or caterer at venumark.com. Each report consolidates the full inspection history into a 0-100 risk score, a letter grade, a violation breakdown by severity, a trend chart, and the current license status. $9.99 per report, first free with code FIRSTFREE.

What DBPR does not cover

DBPR regulates mobile food vendors and caterers but does not cover:

County health department inspections. Some counties run parallel inspection programs. DBPR records do not include those.
Federal FDA enforcement. For food recalls or interstate-commerce issues, the FDA operates separately.
Insurance and liability coverage. DBPR does not verify that a vendor carries general liability or product liability insurance. That is part of pre-booking vendor vetting, covered in our food truck vetting guide.
Consumer reviews or reputation. DBPR tracks compliance, not taste or service quality.

Frequently asked questions

What does DBPR stand for in Florida?

DBPR is the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation. Within DBPR, the Division of Hotels and Restaurants is the agency that licenses and inspects mobile food vendors (food trucks) and caterers in the state.

How often does DBPR inspect a food truck?

Routine inspections typically occur at least once per licensing year for most mobile food vendors. DBPR also conducts complaint-driven, follow-up, and license-renewal inspections on top of the routine cycle. A vendor with recent high-priority violations gets re-inspected more frequently until the issues are resolved.

What are the three DBPR violation categories?

DBPR classifies every violation as High-Priority, Intermediate, or Basic. High-priority violations directly contribute to foodborne illness (temperature abuse, cross-contamination, pest activity, employee hygiene). Intermediate violations create conditions where illness can occur but are not immediate hazards. Basic violations cover general sanitation, recordkeeping, and maintenance.

What happens if a food truck fails a DBPR inspection?

Depending on the severity, DBPR may issue a warning, require corrective action by a follow-up date, issue a citation with a fine, order an emergency suspension of operations, or in extreme cases revoke the license. Operations cannot resume until the violations are corrected and verified at a re-inspection.

Where can I find a specific food truck inspection record?

DBPR publishes inspection records at myfloridalicense.com under the Public Records search. For a consolidated view across every licensed Florida mobile food vendor and caterer, with a risk score and violation-by-severity breakdown, search the vendor at venumark.com.

What is the difference between a routine inspection and a follow-up inspection?

A routine inspection is the scheduled cycle visit DBPR performs on every licensed vendor. A follow-up inspection is a return visit specifically to verify that violations found at a prior inspection have been corrected. Follow-ups are triggered by high-priority or unresolved violations.

Are DBPR inspection records public?

Yes. Under Florida public records law, DBPR inspection reports for mobile food vendors and caterers are public and available to anyone. DBPR publishes them at myfloridalicense.com, and VMScore republishes them in a consolidated, scored format at venumark.com.

Related resources

Check a vendor record in under a minute.

16,000-plus Florida mobile food vendors and caterers, every inspection and violation on file, consolidated and scored. First report free with FIRSTFREE.

Search any FL vendor