Highland junk cars, bought where they sit and towed free

Can Highland put a sticker on a junk car in my driveway?

Yes, if it’s in public view. Highland treats a car with no current plates or insurance, flat tires, or an engine that won’t start as junk, and after five days it can sticker the car and later tow it. Cash For Junk Cars Chicago Smart Tow Inc can collect it first, with a free tow and payment at pickup, and same-day pickup is often possible.

Nothing about how we buy junk cars changes in Highland: the offer stands until you use it, the tow costs nothing, and two or more cars can go in one visit. What’s local is the code, and Highland’s is strict.

Highland, briefly

• Highland shares boundaries with Hammond, Munster, Griffith, Schererville and Gary (OpenStreetMap).
• Close to 78% of homes are owner-occupied, and about one in five is in a building of five or more units (ACS 2020 to 2024).
• The town has a history of flooding along the Little Calumet River, worst in spring and away from Ridge Road, its highest ground, with major floods in 2006, 2007 and 2008 (Wikipedia).

Six conditions, five days, one sticker

Highland’s abandoned and junk vehicle section (§ 9.60.010) doesn’t wait for a car to look derelict. Any one of these is enough:

• no current license plates
• no current insurance
• it can’t run safely under its own power
• major parts missing, or heavy damage
• flat tires, a dead engine, or no way to move forward and back
• it’s a traffic hazard on a right-of-way

Keep a car like that on any property in public view for more than five days, and police or code enforcement can put a five-day sticker on it and then tow it, from private property too. A tarp or car cover doesn’t count as hiding it, and one that’s hazardous or leaking fluids can go at once. Licensed junkyards are excepted. Unresolved violations are fined $100 to $2,500 each, and every day counts as a separate offense (§ 9.60.030).

Our guide to what makes a car junk looks at the same question from the owner’s side.

Low ground along the Little Calumet

When the Little Calumet floods, the blocks away from Ridge Road get the worst of it. A car that sat in water is still one we buy, and the guide to rain and flood damage explains what water does inside it.

Snow, alleys and resident-only streets

After 2 inches of snow, no car may park on any Highland street until it’s been cleared (§ 10.20.220). Move it into a driveway or onto a stretch that’s already plowed; otherwise it’s ticketed and then towed at the owner’s cost.

Alley parking has to leave 10 feet open and can’t block a driveway (§ 10.20.080). Some streets are for residents and their visitors only (§ 10.20.280), and cars that don’t belong there can be cited and towed. If the car is on one of those blocks, mention it when you call.

Indianapolis Boulevard, Cline Avenue and the subdivisions

Highland sits just south of the Borman Expressway (I-80/94). Indianapolis Boulevard (US 41) is the main north-south road, running from the Hammond line to Main Street, and Cline Avenue (SR 912) crosses the town too. Kennedy Avenue comes in from Hammond, Ridge Road runs from Cline Avenue to the Munster line, and 45th Avenue links the Griffith and Munster lines.

Most of the town is subdivisions, among them Wicker Park Manor (Frog Hollow), Southridge, Brantwood and Sandalwood. Seven homes in ten are detached houses, so most cars wait in a driveway; for one in an apartment or condo lot, clear the pickup with management first. Addresses use the Hammond numbering system.

Every junk car sale in Indiana needs the title or a BMV certificate of authority, and only a car 15 or more model years old can skip the title, certificate in hand. If the car is younger and has neither, buying it is a Level 6 felony for the buyer. How Indiana’s title rule works and how far our Indiana pickups reach are both on the Northwest Indiana page.

Next to Highland

Munster lies directly west, joined to Highland by Ridge Road and 45th Avenue. Hammond borders the town, with Kennedy Avenue and Indianapolis Boulevard crossing the line. North of Highland is the East Chicago South Shore station. Griffith and Gary border Highland as well, and Griffith and Gary pickups are covered on the Northwest Indiana page; Schererville, also on Highland’s edge, is outside our pickup area. For the rest, the towns and counties we serve are listed by region, or send the car’s details now.