Rule guide · Safety devices

Window guards, explained.

In buildings with three or more apartments, you must install approved window guards in any apartment where a child 10 or younger lives, and in any apartment where the tenant asks for them, child or not. The law exists because it works: falls dropped sharply after it passed.

What it costs to skip: a class C immediately hazardous violation from HPD, with civil penalties that accrue until corrected, and serious liability exposure if a child is injured where a guard belonged.

Applies toBuildings with 3+ apartments (and rentals generally on request)

TriggerA child 10 or younger living in the unit, or any tenant's request

Annual noticeSend each January; tenant reply due February 15

Where guards goAll openable windows in the unit except fire-escape access windows

AgencyHPD

The lawNYC Admin. Code § 27-2043.1 · Health Code § 131.15

The January ritual

Every January you send each tenant the official window guard notice asking whether a child 10 or younger lives in the apartment. Tenants should return it by February 15. No response? Follow up, keep proof you sent it, and if you have any reason to believe a young child lives there, install guards anyway. The paper trail is your protection.

Getting the installation right

Use HPD-approved window guards, installed per the manufacturer's specs; stops that limit window openings are not a substitute where guards are required.
Never put a guard on a window that opens onto a fire escape: that window is the escape route.
First-floor windows still count if required by the rule.

Air conditioners and gaps

The rule cares about openings a child could fit through. If an AC unit leaves a gap in a required window, it needs to be properly blocked. HPD's window guard page has the specifics.

See every rule that applies to your building

Sources: HPD, Window Guards · Admin. Code § 27-2043.1. Reviewed July 4, 2026. This guide organizes public requirements in plain English; it is not legal advice, and No Fines is not affiliated with the City of New York. Confirm specifics with the agency before your deadline.