Selling a dead car in Calumet City

No local inoperable-car section found

The city code sections we read cover parking, towing and impounds, but not a rule on a broken car parked on a home lot. Each Illinois city may choose, through an ordinance, to treat inoperable cars "in view of the general public" as a nuisance, with police towing one 7 days after notice. In Calumet City a car is inoperable after 7 days or more without an engine, wheels or other parts, or when damage keeps it from moving under its own power. Ordinary repair work does not count. Calumet City may have its own rules, so a notice from the city is the clock to follow.

Separately, Section 90-320 keeps heavy vehicles, boats and trailers out of front yards on residential lots. Ordinary cars may sit on a permanent driveway.

Who may tow, and from where

Section 90-314 sets the rules for private "commercial vehicle relocators." A lot owner using one must post "no less than three (3) towing signs." The driver must show credentials, and the truck must carry the relocator's name. A contract does not carry over when the property changes hands. And "No commercial vehicle relocator may tow any vehicle from any street within the city for a state or local violation without prior authorization from the Calumet City Police Department."

Impounds by the city under Section 62-8 carry an administrative penalty on top of towing and storage. An owner can ask for a preliminary hearing, held "within forty-eight (48) hours of the request," weekends and holidays excluded. A car not reclaimed "within ten (10) days" after the review period ends may be disposed of.

State law adds clocks for abandoned cars. A car left on private property that is not its owner's can be removed after 7 days. A towed car over 7 years old can be scrapped after 10 days if nobody claims it. A newer one is auctioned 30 days after notice. Our towed or impounded guide covers selling one.

Title and plates for a Cook County seller

Titles don't come from the county. For Calumet City owners, they come from the Illinois Secretary of State, either mailed through Springfield or done at a state facility. The seller signs and dates the assignment on the title, prints both names, and writes in the miles. Illinois lists no notary for sellers. You remove the plates and keep them. Write the amount paid and the day on a bill of sale. Next, Calumet City sellers right away send the Secretary of State in Springfield either the Notice of Sale stub off the title or form VSD 703. Your buyer then has 20 days to retitle.

A junking certificate covers a car headed for scrap. That application usually travels with the title inside 15 days; with no lienholder on record, the title does not have to go in. The state's emissions area includes Cook County.

Getting an offer

Calumet City sellers can phone (877) 421-6008 or use the short form here. In Calumet City we pick up from a driveway, a curb before signs go up, or a repair shop. Nearby: Lansing, South Holland and Dolton. Statewide rules: Illinois.