2023 New York Laws › VAT - Vehicle and Traffic › Title 2 - Department of Motor Vehicles; Commissioner › Article 2-B - Adjudication of Parking Infractions › 239 - Ownership and Operation of Vehicles; Liability.

§ 239. Ownership and operation of vehicles; liability. 1. Definitions.
Whenever  used  in  this  article,  the  following  terms shall have the
following meanings:
a. "Owner" means any person, corporation, partnership,  firm,  agency,
association,  lessor, or organization who at the time of the issuance of
a notice of violation in any city in which a vehicle is operated:
(1) is the beneficial or equitable owner of such vehicle; or
(2) has title to such vehicle; or
(3) is the registrant  or  co-registrant  of  such  vehicle  which  is
registered  with  the  department of motor vehicles of this state or any
other  state,   territory,   district,   province,   nation   or   other
jurisdiction; or
(4)  uses such vehicle in its vehicle renting and/or leasing business;
or
(5) is an owner of such vehicle as  defined  by  section  one  hundred
twenty-eight  of  this  chapter or subdivision (a) of section twenty-one
hundred one of this chapter.
b. "Lessor" means any person, corporation, firm, partnership,  agency,
association  or  organization  engaged  in  the  business  of renting or
leasing vehicles to any lessee or bailee under a rental agreement, lease
or otherwise, wherein the said lessee or bailee has the exclusive use of
said vehicle for any period of time.
c. "Lessee" means any person, corporation, firm, partnership,  agency,
association  or  organization that rents, bails, leases or contracts for
the use of one or more vehicles and has the exclusive  use  thereof  for
any period of time.
d.  "Vehicle"  means  a  vehicle  as  defined  in  section one hundred
fifty-nine of this chapter.
e.  "Operator"  means  any  person,  corporation,  firm,  partnership,
agency,  association,  organization  or  lessee  that uses or operates a
vehicle with or without the permission of the owner, and  an  owner  who
operates his own vehicle.
f.  "Notice  of  violation"  means a notice of violation as defined in
subdivision nine of section two hundred thirty-seven  of  this  article,
but shall not be deemed to include a notice of liability issued pursuant
to authorization set forth in articles ten, twenty-four, twenty-nine and
thirty of this chapter, section two thousand nine hundred eighty-five of
the  public  authorities  law  and  sections  sixteen-a,  sixteen-b  and
sixteen-c of chapter seven hundred seventy-four of the laws of  nineteen
hundred fifty to impose monetary liability on the owner of a vehicle for
failure   of   an  operator  thereof:  to  comply  with  traffic-control
indications in violation of subdivision (d) of  section  eleven  hundred
eleven  of  this  chapter  through  the  installation  and  operation of
traffic-control signal photo violation-monitoring systems, in accordance
with article twenty-four of this chapter;  or  to  comply  with  certain
posted  maximum  speed limits in violation of subdivision (b), (c), (d),
(f) or (g) of section eleven hundred eighty of this chapter through  the
installation  and operation of photo speed violation monitoring systems,
in accordance with article thirty of this chapter; or to comply with bus
lane restrictions as defined by  article  twenty-four  of  this  chapter
through  the  installation  and  operation of bus lane photo devices, in
accordance with article twenty-four of this chapter; or to  comply  with
toll  collection  regulations  of certain public authorities through the
installation and operation of photo-monitoring  systems,  in  accordance
with  the provisions of section two thousand nine hundred eighty-five of
the  public  authorities  law  and  sections  sixteen-a,  sixteen-b  and
sixteen-c  of chapter seven hundred seventy-four of the laws of nineteen
hundred fifty; or to stop for a  school  bus  displaying  a  red  visual

signal  in  violation  of  section  eleven  hundred seventy-four of this
chapter through the installation  and  operation  of  school  bus  photo
violation  monitoring systems, in accordance with article twenty-nine of
this  chapter;  or to comply with certain posted maximum speed limits in
violation of subdivision (b), (d), (f) or (g) of section eleven  hundred
eighty of this chapter within a highway construction or maintenance work
area  through  the  installation  and operation of photo speed violation
monitoring systems, in accordance with article thirty of  this  chapter;
or  to  comply with gross vehicle weight and/or axle weight restrictions
in violation of section three hundred eighty-five of  this  chapter  and
the  rules  of  the department of transportation of the city of New York
through the installation and operation  of  weigh  in  motion  violation
monitoring  systems,  in accordance with article ten of this chapter; or
to comply with bus operation-related traffic regulations as  defined  by
article  twenty-four  of  this  chapter in violation of the rules of the
department of transportation  of  the  city  of  New  York  through  the
installation  and  operation  of bus operation-related photo devices, in
accordance with article twenty-four of this chapter.
g. "Fiscal year" means a period of one year commencing  on  the  first
day of July and terminating on the thirtieth day of June.
h.  "Primary  filing"  means  the initial filing of registration plate
numbers by a lessor prior to the commencement of each fiscal year.
2. Liability. a. The operator of a vehicle shall  be  liable  for  the
fines or penalties imposed pursuant to this article. Except as otherwise
provided  in  paragraphs  b  and e of this subdivision, the owner of the
vehicle, even  if  not  the  operator  thereof,  shall  be  jointly  and
severally  liable with the operator thereof, if such vehicle was used or
operated with the permission of the owner, express or  implied,  but  in
such  case  the owner may recover any fine or penalties paid by him from
the operator.
b. The lessor of a motor vehicle shall not  be  liable  for  fines  or
penalties imposed pursuant to this article if:
(1)  prior to the infraction, the lessor has filed with the bureau the
registration plate number, plate type, and place of registration of  the
vehicle  to  which  the  notice  of  violation  was  issued and paid the
required filing fee provided in paragraph f of this subdivision and,
(2) within thirty-seven days after receiving notice from the bureau of
the date and time of a violation, together with  the  other  information
contained in the original notice of violation, the lessor submits to the
bureau  the  correct  name  and  address  of  the  lessee of the vehicle
identified in the notice of violation at the  time  of  such  violation,
together with such other additional information contained in the rental,
lease  or  other contract document, as may be reasonably required by the
bureau pursuant to regulations that may be promulgated for such purpose.
c. If the lessor has complied with subparagraph one of paragraph b  of
this  subdivision  such  lessor shall not be liable for any penalties in
excess of the scheduled fine unless such lessor fails to  appear  within
thirty-seven days of actual receipt of a notice of violation pursuant to
paragraph e of this subdivision.
d. If the lessor who has complied with subparagraph one of paragraph b
of  this subdivision has paid any fine or penalty for which he is liable
and the bureau subsequently collects from the  operator  or  lessee  the
amount  of  the  scheduled  fine and penalty owed by such person, or any
portion thereof, the lessor shall be entitled to reimbursement from  the
bureau  of  the  amount of the fine and penalty paid by the lessor, less
the bureau's costs of collection.
e. The lessor shall not be  liable  for  any  fines  or  penalties  in
connection  with  a notice of violation for a vehicle whose registration

plate number is filed and the fee therefor paid prior to the time of the
issuance of notice of violation, unless the lessor shall receive  notice
from  the  bureau  of the date and time of such violation, together with
the  other  information  contained  in the original notice of violation,
within ninety  days  after  service  of  the  notice  of  violation,  in
accordance  with  subdivision two of section two hundred thirty-eight of
this article.
f. The annual fee for filing a  registration  plate  number  with  the
bureau  by lessors under this section shall be twelve dollars per fiscal
year.  Lessors shall also provide the bureau with such other  additional
information  in  such  format as the bureau by regulation may reasonably
require. The registration plate number shall  not  be  considered  filed
with  the  bureau  unless  the  annual  filing  fee provided for in this
subdivision shall have been paid. Lessors shall not  be  entitled  to  a
refund, reduction, credit or other consideration in connection with such
annual  filing  fee  in the event that such registration plate number is
withdrawn from service, destroyed or surrendered during the fiscal  year
for  which  such registration plate number shall have been filed. In the
event that a lessor files with the  bureau  registration  plate  numbers
during the fiscal year, the annual filing fee for same shall be prorated
on  a monthly basis, in accordance with a schedule that the bureau shall
promulgate by regulation for such purpose. The primary  filing  by  each
lessor  for each fiscal year shall be made at least thirty days prior to
the commencement of the fiscal year.
g. Where the United States postal authorities return to the  bureau  a
delinquency  notice  forwarded  by the bureau to a name and address of a
lessee furnished by a lessor  in  accordance  with  provisions  of  this
section,  such  return  notice  shall  be  presumptive  evidence  of the
furnishing of an incorrect name and address by the  lessor.  The  lessor
may,  however,  conclusively rebut such presumption if within sixty days
after receiving notification from  the  bureau  of  such  returned  mail
notice,  the  lessor  shall  provide  to the bureau a copy of the rental
agreement or lease agreement for such lessee  containing  the  name  and
address  previously  furnished to the bureau. In the event that a lessor
shall fail to rebut the presumption established by this subdivision, the
lessor shall be liable for the fines imposed pursuant  to  this  article
and  in  accordance  with  the  rules and regulations promulgated by the
bureau.
h. The bureau shall by rules and regulations prescribe the manner  and
method of giving notice of outstanding violations to the lessees, except
that  notices  of impending default judgment shall be forwarded by first
class mail, in accordance with subdivision two of  section  two  hundred
forty-one  of  this  article.  All notices to lessors under this section
shall be by first class mail to the address on file with the  bureau  or
by  such  other  means  as  shall  be  provided  for  in  the  rules and
regulations of the bureau.
i. A lessor shall cooperate with the  bureau  in  the  enforcement  of
judgments  rendered  against  lessees  or  providing  the bureau, or its
designated agents, with such other additional information  as  shall  be
contained in such lessor's rental or lease agreements with their lessees
as shall be available to them.
3.  Stolen vehicles. If any owner of a motor vehicle receives a notice
of violation for a period during which the illegally parked vehicle  was
reported  to  any police department as having been stolen, it shall be a
valid defense to any charge  of  a  parking  violation  that  the  motor
vehicle  had been reported to the police as stolen prior to the time the
violation occurred and had not been recovered  by  such  time.  For  the
purposes of asserting the defense provided by this subdivision, it shall

be  sufficient  that a certified copy of the police report of the stolen
vehicle be mailed to the bureau.
* 4.  Applicability.  The provisions of paragraph b of subdivision two
and subdivision three  of  this  section  shall  not  be  applicable  to
determinations  of  owner  liability  for  the failure of an operator to
comply with subdivision (d) of section eleven  hundred  eleven  of  this
chapter and shall not be applicable to determinations of owner liability
imposed pursuant to section two thousand nine hundred eighty-five of the
public  authorities  law and sections sixteen-a, sixteen-b and sixteen-c
of chapter seven hundred seventy-four of the laws  of  nineteen  hundred
fifty  and  shall not be applicable to determinations of owner liability
for the failure of an operator to comply with subdivision (b), (c), (d),
(f) or (g) of section eleven hundred eighty of this chapter.
* NB Effective until December 1, 2024
* 4. Applicability. The provisions of paragraph b of  subdivision  two
and  subdivision  three  of  this  section  shall  not  be applicable to
determinations of owner liability for the  failure  of  an  operator  to
comply  with  subdivision  (b),  (c),  (d), (f) or (g) of section eleven
hundred eighty of this chapter.
* NB Effective December 1, 2024 until July 1, 2025