A dead car on a Westchester driveway
Westchester is a village of houses. Census estimates put about nine in ten homes in one-unit buildings, and a similar share are lived in by their owners. So the junk cars we pick up here usually sit on a private driveway, a parking pad, or inside a detached garage, not out on the street.
That driveway isn’t as safe a place to park a dead car as people assume. The village’s abandoned and junk vehicle chapter wants a car that has been wrecked, stripped, burned or simply not running for a week kept inside a garage in residential areas. Parked outside in plain view, it can draw a notice, and the code gives police authority to remove it seven days after that notice. If yours has been sitting since last month, the clock may already matter.
Getting the car out around Westchester’s parking rules
Most pickups here are easy: we back up to the driveway, load the car, and leave. A few local rules are worth knowing first.
- Overnight on certain streets. Section 11.32.100 bars parking from 2 to 6 a.m. on a list of named streets and courts, including Westminster Drive and Ashton and Brighton Courts. Don’t leave a dead car there overnight while you wait for us.
- Snow. After 2 inches, the snow emergency routes (Westchester Boulevard, Canterbury Street and Wakefield Street among them) must be clear, and a winter alternate-side rule kicks in on other streets. A car that can’t move is the one that gets towed by the village.
- For-sale signs. Section 11.32.030 bars parking a car on the street to show it for sale, so a curbside “make an offer” sign isn’t a workaround.
- Alleys. Where a garage opens onto an alley, the code wants 10 feet kept clear. Tell us about alley-only access when you call.
Stickers, paperwork and payment
Westchester sells vehicle stickers from March 1, and they are due by the end of April. If a car is going to the scrapyard this spring, settle that before you buy it a sticker.
For paperwork, the title is the easy route. If you can’t find it, list what you do have on the call: registration, an old bill of sale, an insurance card, your ID. Illinois rules decide which documents a scrap sale can go ahead with, so we check your situation before we send a truck. Our Illinois bill of sale guide for junk cars explains what that document should say.
Towing is free, you are paid at pickup, and a same-day appointment is often possible. We also work in the villages around Westchester, including Broadview to the east and La Grange Park to the southeast. The full list is on our areas we serve page.
Selling a car in Westchester: common questions
My dead car is in my Westchester driveway, not on the street. Is that a problem?
It can be. Westchester's Chapter 7.60 expects a junk vehicle in a residential district to be garaged, and one left in public view counts as a nuisance even on your own lot. After a notice of violation, police can have it removed seven days later. Selling it before that point keeps the decision yours.
What happens if the car is sitting on a Westchester snow route when it snows?
Once 2 inches fall, Chapter 11.30 bans parking on the designated snow emergency routes, such as Westchester Boulevard, Mayfair Avenue and Balmoral Avenue, until the snow is cleared, and violators can be towed. Push a dead car into a driveway or onto a side street before a storm, then call us.