Speed and Red Light Cameras: What TLC Drivers Owe

In short: a camera ticket (speed or red light) is mailed to the vehicle's registered owner, costs $50, and adds no points — not DMV points and not TLC points. It is handled by the NYC Department of Finance, not OATH. A red light or speeding ticket handed to you by an officer is different: it can carry points on your DMV or TLC record and can count toward a TLC suspension (NYC DOT; NYC 311).

The real questions for TLC drivers are who ends up paying when you drive someone else's car, and when unpaid camera fines become a TLC problem.

Camera ticket or officer's ticket?

Sources: NYC DOT; NYC 311; NY DMV; TLC chapter 80. The DMV's Traffic Violations Bureau says it does not handle red light or speed camera tickets.

How NYC's speed cameras work

• Where: state law lets the city run speed cameras only in school speed zones — within a quarter-mile of a school — in 750 zones across all five boroughs. A speed-limit sign before each camera says it is photo enforced.
• When: since August 1, 2022, cameras operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, all year.
• Threshold: a notice is issued only when a vehicle goes more than 10 mph over the limit, after a DOT technician reviews the images.
• Fine: $50, mailed to the registered owner. No DMV record entry, no insurance use, no points.
• Repeat notices: if a vehicle gets 15 or more speed camera notices in 12 months, the owner may have to take a DOT safe-vehicle-operation course, or the vehicle may be impounded.

Source: NYC DOT Speed Camera FAQs. In June 2025 the state extended the city's school speed camera program to July 1, 2030 (Governor of New York).

Red light cameras

The fine is $50, no points are added, and "the vehicle registered owner is responsible for the violation, even if someone else was driving" (NYC 311). The Department of Finance says to answer within 30 days. After that a $25 penalty is added, a final notice follows 30 days later, and enforcement against the owner can start 14 days after the final notice (NYC Finance).

Finance lists defenses such as: a health emergency, following a police officer's directions, being part of a funeral procession, the car or plate not being the one in the photos, or the vehicle or plate being stolen or transferred before the date. You can also ask for the technician's certificates. Speed camera notices are disputed the same way, through Finance.

Who pays when you lease or rent the vehicle

If you don't own the car you drive, the notice goes to the owner, and the owner may try to pass the cost to you. TLC rules limit this.

Sources: TLC chapter 59, §59A-21; TLC chapter 58, §58-21(e).

The rules name parking tickets and red light violations. They do not name speed camera or other camera notices. If a garage takes money for a speed camera notice, ask for the notice, check your lease, and consider asking TLC or a lawyer whether the charge is allowed. FHV leases must state that overcharging a driver is prohibited and that you can complain to TLC or call 311. More on leases: buying or leasing a TLC vehicle.

If you own your vehicle

If the car is registered in your name — or your company's — every camera notice is yours. A few habits help:

• Keep your mailing address current with the DMV, so notices reach you before penalties start. The 30-day clock runs from the notice, whether or not you open it.
• Match each notice to your trip records. If the photos show a car or plate that isn't yours, that is a listed defense. If your plates were stolen, the DOT says a police report can be given to Finance when you contest.
• Don't let notices pile up. Beyond the money, DOT says that 15 or more speed camera notices in 12 months can lead to a required safety course or impoundment, and Finance says enforcement against the owner can start after the final notice.
• If someone else drives your car, decide in writing who pays camera tickets. TLC's lease rules above set the limits on what you can charge a driver who leases from you.

Why cameras don't change your TLC point count

TLC's suspension program counts TLC Points and DMV Points. A camera notice creates neither: the DOT says it is not made part of anyone's DMV operating record, and no TLC rule assigns points to it. That is why a camera notice never appears in a Persistent Violator count — but an officer's ticket for the same red light can. If you want to see how close you are to a suspension, use the points calculator.

When camera fines become a TLC problem

Camera tickets carry no points, but they are not invisible to TLC. Rule 80-04(n) says anyone applying for a TLC license — including a renewal — must pay, and prove payment of, outstanding fines owed to TLC, the Department of Finance's Parking Violations Bureau, the Red Light Camera Unit, and the DMV's Traffic Violations Bureau. If you own your car, unpaid camera fines are yours, and they can hold up your license renewal.

Officers still write red light and speeding summonses

Cameras are only part of the picture. TLC summonses for traffic signals and speeding are written by officers and inspectors and heard at OATH. Summonses citing the red light rule, 80-13(a)(3)(vii), appear thousands of times a year in the OATH record:

These carry 3 TLC points and count toward the Persistent Violator Program. See the violation pages for the traffic-signal rule and speeding 11–20 mph over, and how points combine in DMV points vs TLC points.

Quick checklist