It’s About to Get Harder to Buy & Sell this Auto Part in Illinois

I admire those who have the talent to tinker with cars and trucks and fix things since that is an ability that I never learned. If you do, you should know that it's about to get a lot harder to buy and sell a specific auto part in Illinois.

The Illinois General Assembly had vehicles on their collective minds when they created HB4589. I first saw this bill mentioned by the website Patch among the 10 Illinois laws that will change your life in 2025. This is a big change if you buy or sell auto parts in the Land of Lincoln.

The new restrictions on the buying and selling of catalytic converters is what HB4589 is all about. Here's a snippet from section 3 of the bill:

"Records of purchases. Except as provided in
Section 5 of this Act every recyclable metal dealer in this
State shall enter into an electronic record-keeping system for
each purchase of recyclable metal, a catalytic converter or
its contents, or recyclable metal containing copper the
following information:
1. The name and address of the recyclable metal
dealer;
2. The date and place of each purchase;
3. The name, address, and copy of the license as an
automotive parts recycler or scrap processor issued by the
Secretary of State of the person or persons from whom the
recyclable metal was purchased, which shall be verified
from a valid driver's license or other government-issued
photo identification."

The bottom line is if you're selling a catalytic converter, you have to verify your identity and also proof of ownership of the vehicle it came from. If you're buying a catalytic converter, you'll need to keep a photographed copy of the person's identity and vehicle identification.

Why is this new Illinois law necessary?

Illinois has been one of the top states for catalytic converter thefts for years and this past year is no exception.

This new law goes into effect on January 1, 2025 so best to prepare now and make sure your i's are dotted and your t's are crossed if you're in the auto parts business.