NEW YORK – New York City has successfully recovered more than $9 million from Amazon after the company’s delivery vehicles accrued fines due to idling violations.
“Amazon is worth $2 trillion. Yet, it did not deign to pay the millions of dollars it racked up in unpaid fines as its’ trucks illegally polluted our air and forced New Yorkers to breathe in their exhaust. We are going to collect every dollar they owe the people of this city,” said Mayor Zohran Mamdani. “These laws exist for a reason: cleaner air, healthier communities, and a city where corporations are held to the same standard as everyone else. Today we are making clear that no company – no matter how large or powerful – is above the law.”
“As part of the Mayor’s directive to ensure fairness, collaboration, and accountability in our agency’s service to New Yorkers, the Department of Finance is committed to collecting debts owed to the City and supporting enforcement efforts that protect New Yorkers’ quality of life,” said NYC Dept. of Finance Commissioner Richard Lee. “The successful collection effort led by DOF Deputy Commissioner Annette Hill and her team, demonstrates the effectiveness of this administration working collaboratively with companies to ensure compliance, holding entities accountable for meeting their financial obligations to the City, and assisting companies like Amazon to prevent accumulating debt.”
Earlier this year, at Mayor Mamdani’s direction, DOF’s Collections Unit launched a targeted effort to address the huge number of unpaid idling summonses connected to vehicles operating within Amazon’s delivery network. Since then, the Collections Unit has worked collaboratively with Amazon.com, Inc. and its contracted transportation vendors to recover the outstanding debt.
The enforcement effort focused on idling violations associated with vehicles operating through Amazon Logistics, which relies on a network of third-party transportation contractors. As a result of these efforts, DOF collected $6.88 million in ECB judgment violations and an additional $2.15 million in pre-judgment ECB violations.
New York City’s anti-idling laws are designed to reduce harmful air pollution, improve public health and combat climate change. Under City law, most vehicles may not idle for longer than three minutes while parked, standing, or stopped.
