Class action status granted to lawsuit against Suffolk County's red-light camera fees

A state court ruled on Wednesday that drivers who paid extra fees for Suffolk red-light camera tickets are eligible for class certification, potentially moving motorists one step closer to getting reimbursed.

Rather than recouping their funds from the county individually, each driver who paid an administrative fee will be entitled to restitution from the county as part of the class action case.

The decision comes two weeks after the same court — the Appellate Division, Second Department in Brooklyn — ruled that any extra fees on top of the base $50 fine and $25 late fee, are illegal. Nassau has since stopped charging the extra $100 it had collected in "public safety" and "driver responsibility" fees. Suffolk had collected a $30 administrative fee per ticket, but it stopped that in 2023 and then legislators let its entire red-light camera program expire at the beginning of this month.

The court ruled that a class action is merited because "the class consists of a large number of identifiable individuals seeking ... relatively small sums of damages."

Though the new decision only pertains to Suffolk County, it suggests that drivers in Nassau will also ultimately be granted class status, according to David Raimondo, a lead attorney for the plaintiffs in both counties.

"It’s over, time [for the counties] to pay up," he said.

Suffolk County spokesman Michael Martino and Nassau County spokesman Chris Boyle did not immediately respond to Newsday’s requests for comment.

Raimondo said the next step will be a conference with county attorneys and the Suffolk judge, David T. Reilly, in late January, when they will discuss a plan for reimbursing ticket holders.

"It is my hope that everyone gets back exactly what they paid," Raimondo said.

Suffolk County Legis. Robert Trotta (R-Fort Salonga), who sponsored the bill eliminating the fees, said the county was warned that the fees were illegal.

"When they put this fee on, we were yelling and screaming, ‘You can't do this,' " he said. "The county is going to have to pony up for this."

According to Suffolk’s 2023 annual red-light camera report, the county collected more than $90.5 million in administrative fees between 2013 and 2023. Raimondo said that county officials owe drivers 6% interest on top of the administrative fees, according to state law.

He said that both Nassau and Suffolk counties have indicated they have kept records of who has paid fines and how much. He said his legal team will also have to be compensated.

Ann Weisman, a retiree who lives in Jericho, told Newsday that she hadn’t had a ticket for 45 years until she received a red-light camera ticket, for $150, in June.

At first, she said she thought about fighting it, because she felt it was unfair, but ultimately paid after deciding it wasn’t worth spending time in court.

"I don't need the money. But, I believe in the principle and I don't like being taken advantage of," she said.