Two dates decide what an FDNY summons costs
A published schedule sets the penalty, category by category. What moves it is whether the Fire Department has your certification within thirty-five days, and whether the condition is corrected by the original hearing date.
A first offender who certifies in time can pay nothing
Correct the condition, get the Certificate of Correction to the Fire Department within thirty-five days of the summons, and if it is approved before your hearing date you avoid both the hearing and the penalty. Most of what follows is about what happens when that window is missed.
What the schedule actually says
Fire Penalty Schedule II sets a penalty per violation category. Every category also carries a mitigated amount, available when the condition is corrected as of the original hearing date, and a higher amount for a second or subsequent violation.
| Category | First | Mitigated | Second |
|---|---|---|---|
| BF01 Portable fire extinguishers and fire hoses | $500 | $250 | $1,500 |
| BF05 Posting of permits and record keeping | $600 | $300 | $1,750 |
| BF09 Means of egress | $600 | $300 | $1,750 |
| BF12 Fire protection systems | $900 | $450 | $2,000 |
| BF16 Ventilation | $600 | $300 | $1,750 |
| BF17 Certificates of Fitness and Qualification | $600 | $300 | $1,750 |
| BF20 Inspection and testing | $400 | $200 | $1,250 |
| BF31 Failing to comply with an order to correct and certify | $1,250 | None | $3,500 |
| BF32 False certification | $2,500 | None | $4,500 |
Maximums are $1,000 on a first violation and $5,000 on a second. A violation counts as second or subsequent when the same respondent breaches the same provision or category within eighteen months, and is the owner of the same premises.
The paperwork costs more than the equipment
The two most expensive ordinary categories on the schedule are both paperwork. False certification is $2,500 on a first violation, rising to $4,500 on a second, and failing to comply with an order to correct and certify is $1,250 and then $3,500. Neither can be mitigated by fixing the condition afterwards.
Fire protection systems — sprinklers, standpipes and suppression — is $900. An extinguisher category is $500, or $250 corrected. Signing something inaccurate to close a summons costs several times more than the condition it was hiding. Check who is putting their name to yours.
What we actually do here
We correct the conditions and produce the records a certification needs: suppression service, extinguisher tags, emergency lighting tests, hood and duct cleaning certificates, and the photographs that go with them. Those records are the certification. A corrected condition with nothing to show for it is still an open summons.
We are not attorneys and we do not appear at OATH on your behalf. If the summons needs defending rather than correcting, that is somebody else’s work and we will say so.
Send us the summons and we will tell you what it needs → DOB violations and OATH summonses →
Common questions
- How long do I have?
- Thirty-five days from the date the summons was issued, for the condition to be corrected and the Certificate of Correction to reach the Fire Department. It is filed online through FDNY Business; the Department no longer accepts it by email.
- If I fix it, do I still pay?
- Often not. If you are a first offender and the Fire Department approves your certification before the scheduled hearing date, you avoid the hearing and the penalty. Even where that does not apply, most categories carry a mitigated penalty of roughly half, available when the condition is corrected as of the original hearing date.
- What makes it a second violation?
- The same respondent, on the same provision of law or violation category, with a date of occurrence within eighteen months of the earlier one, where the respondent is the owner of the premises and the earlier violation happened at the same premises. Second penalties are roughly three times the first, and the maximum rises from $1,000 to $5,000.
- What is the most expensive thing on the schedule?
- Both of the top two are paperwork. False certification is $2,500 on a first violation and $4,500 on a second, and failing to comply with an order to correct and certify is $1,250 and then $3,500. Neither can be mitigated. Fire protection systems, the highest ordinary equipment category, is $900.
- What happens if I ignore the hearing?
- Higher fines and a default judgment. If you have submitted a correction and heard nothing back, OATH can reschedule the hearing, which buys time for the price of asking.
- Can you handle the hearing for me?
- No. We correct the conditions and produce the documentation the certification needs — suppression service records, extinguisher tags, emergency lighting tests, hood and duct certificates. We are not attorneys and we do not appear at OATH.
Sources
Penalty figures are transcribed from Fire Penalty Schedule II, which ECB publishes as a scanned PDF. Everything here was read on 2026-09-18.