Department of Buildings records indicate that an approved elevator inspection agency did not submit a required Category 1(CAT1) or Category 5 (CAT5) inspection/test report.
For CAT1 filings accepted with defects, a subsequent Affirmation of Correction (AOC) must be filed with the Department. If the Department of Buildings does not have an AOC on record, it will result in the issuance of a failure to correct defects violation. All defects found on a CAT 1 are required to be corrected within 120 days. Within 60 days of the date of correction, an AOC is required to be filed with the Department.
Category 1 is a no-load safety test of an elevator device that must be performed between January 1st and December 31st of each calendar year. The filing deadline is 60 days from the date of the inspection and test.
Untimely filings are subject to civil penalties/late fees. Reports not filed within 12 months from the date of the inspection are considered expired and will not be accepted by DOB.
Category 5 is a rated, load and speed safety test that must be performed within five years from the month of issuance of a final certificate for a new elevator or within five years from the month of the most recent CAT5 inspection/test on an existing elevator. The five-year inspection/test is required for the various elevator device types listed in Table N1 of the 2014 NYC Building Code.
See NYC Administrative Code §28-304.6 for more information on inspection and test requirements.
Effective June 17, 2020, CAT1 and CAT5 violation payments must be paid in DOB NOW: Safety. This includes both Failure to File and Failure to File an Affirmation of Correction violation types. DOB NOW: Safety will calculate the penalties owed and contains all elevator violation and inspection report data from the Building Information System (BIS) and DOB NOW. To search and pay for a violation, follow these steps:
Payments made in DOB NOW: Safety by credit card will be processed immediately and the violation(s) status will change to dismissed in the Buildings Information System (BIS). Payments made by eCheck will take up to 10 days to be processed. An email notification will be sent when the payment has processed and the violation has been dismissed.
Violations from 2017 or later require a current CAT1 or CAT5 inspection report in accepted status to have been filed in DOB NOW: Safety. Once payment has been made, the violation will not be dismissed unless an accepted inspection report has been submitted. If an inspection report is submitted, an email notification will be sent and the violation will be updated to dismissed status in BIS within 24 hours.
No, there is no deadline to pay the full civil penalty. Violations stay on the property until the civil penalty is paid and a current inspection/test report has been filed. There is no accrued interest. Open violations will stop issuance of a final certificate of occupancy and will negatively affect attempts to re-finance or sell a property.
Most violations for failure to file an elevator inspection report cannot be dismissed without payment of the full civil penalty. In addition, a current elevator inspection report must be on file to clear violations from prior years. If you are a new owner or the elevator has been removed or is no longer required to file you may be eligible for a waiver.
To submit a waiver request, follow the below steps:
An email notification will be sent with the status of the review. If the waiver is granted for all of the violations on the device, the violation status in BIS will be updated to dismissed.
See 1 RCNY §103-02 for specific information about waiver reasons and the proof that needs to be provided.
The Department of Buildings does not grant automatic waivers of elevator violations issued to a prior owner. There are limited circumstances, and all conditions must be met. A final decision will be at the discretion of the Department. You may submit an Elevator Waiver of Civil Penalties request in DOB NOW: Safety. See Question 5 for instructions on submitting a waiver if one of the below reasons applies:
Yes, an owner may be granted a waiver of penalties contingent upon the department acceptance of proof of the following:
See Question 5 for instructions on submitting an Elevator Waiver of Civil Penalties request.
An owner may be granted a waiver of civil penalties contingent upon the department’s confirmation of the following:
See Question 5 for instructions on submitting an Elevator Waiver of Civil Penalties request.
If you need additional information with the elevator violations portal, submit an inquiry at www.nyc.gov/dobnowhelp.
See Question 5 for instructions on submitting an Elevator Waiver of Civil Penalties request.
If the elevator inspection report was submitted on paper, upload a time-stamped copy of the report and proof of payment of the filing fee (if applicable) with the waiver request.
If the elevator inspection report was submitted online, search DOB records to see if your elevator company submitted an inspection report for the year the violation was issued. Go to DOB NOW and enter your address and click search. At the bottom of the screen select SAFETY: Compliance Filings, Compliance Type: Elevators. View the device details and obtain the Tracking Number of a filing with the same Inspection Type as the violation and a Compliance Report Status as Accepted or Accepted with Defects. Provide this tracking number in the waiver request Comments sectionGo to the Buildings Information System (BIS) at www.nyc.gov/bis. Select Building Information Search and use the Search by Property section to find your property. Toward the end of the Property Profile Overview page, select Violations-DOB or Violations-OATH/ECB.
If you received an OATH summons for an audit/complaint inspection, you must correct the violating condition(s) and certify correction with the Department. See Resolving Violations/Summonses: OATH for more information.
For Class 1 hazardous violations resulting in a Cease use of the device, a Certified Elevator Inspection Company must submit a letter, by mail or in-person to the Elevator Unit indicating the corrections made and request a re-inspection of the device.
If the violation is non-hazardous, (device kept in service) the certified elevator company may itself perform the re-inspection, once all listed defects have been corrected, and then submit an Affirmation of Correction (ELV29 Form) along with a copy of the violation to the Elevator Unit.
The Department only accepts paper ELV29/AOC Forms for the correction of PVT violations. AOCs for annual inspections/tests/CAT1s are required to be submitted in DOB NOW: Safety.