Watch Out! NYC is Aggressively Booting Vehicles That Have Outstanding Tickets

The city’s Finance Department has begun to aggressively boot and tow vehicles that have accrued unpaid parking and traffic tickets in an effort to make up for time – and money – lost during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the beginning of the year, drivers with unpaid camera tickets for speeding and running red lights were targeted by city marshals and deputy sheriffs. However, the city is not pursuing drivers with outstanding parking tickets as well.

According to a NY Post analysis of the Department of Finance data, from January to April, 19,965 vehicles were booted, which is a 471% increase from the 3,495 boots distributed during the same period in the previous year.

The number of vehicles towed has also been on the rise, with 6,097 vehicles being towed by the end of April, compared to 933 a year earlier, an increase of 553%.

In March 2020, then-Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that the city would stop booting and towing vehicles as the COVID-19 pandemic began to ravage the city. The city began towing and booting vehicles with over $350 in tickets again in February 2021.

If your vehicle is towed, drivers will have to pay off the tickets and pay an additional $220 in fines.

According to the Department of Finance, the city issued notices to drivers in March that it would start collecting on all unpaid tickets issued since the beginning of the pandemic.

The Department of Finance also announced that while the limit for action against vehicles is usually $350, they will be exclusively targeting drivers with over $500 in parking and traffic violations.