How the car donation process works
Start Your Illinois Donation With a Simple Request
Your car donation begins when you contact Heartland Motors Trust and share basic details about your vehicle, such as the year, make, model, condition, and location. Donors across Illinois can start from Chicago neighborhoods like Lincoln Park, Hyde Park, and Rogers Park, or from suburbs and communities such as Aurora, Joliet, Schaumburg, Evanston, Champaign, and Bloomington. You do not need to be a vehicle expert. The goal is simply to confirm the information needed to schedule pickup and move your donation toward supporting Heritage for the Blind, EIN 58-2164446.
Schedule Free Towing at a Convenient Illinois Location
After your donation is accepted, free towing is arranged at a time and place that works for you. Pickup may be available from a home, apartment lot, office, repair shop, storage location, or other accessible address in Illinois. This helps remove the hassle of selling, advertising, repairing, or transporting the vehicle yourself. Whether your car is in the city, the suburbs, or downstate, the process is designed to be donor-friendly. Heartland Motors Trust helps coordinate the pickup so your vehicle can be moved into the next step: sale and mission funding.
Your Vehicle Is Sold to Generate Charitable Proceeds
Once the vehicle is picked up, it is prepared for sale through the appropriate resale channel. The sale price depends on factors such as condition, age, mileage, market demand, and whether the vehicle can be driven or must be sold for parts or salvage. Heartland Motors Trust does not promise a specific sale amount, because that would not be honest or realistic. What matters for mission-minded donors is this: 100-percent of the vehicle proceeds go to Heritage for the Blind, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit serving people who are blind or visually impaired.
Proceeds Help Fund Heritage for the Blind Services
Heritage for the Blind uses vehicle donation proceeds to support services for blind and visually impaired Americans. This includes helping individuals understand and connect with government assistance programs that may improve daily stability, health access, housing, and household affordability. Programs may include SSI, SSDI, LIHEAP, Section 8, Medicare Extra Help, and Medicaid. If you, a loved one, or someone you know wants to check eligibility for assistance programs, Heritage encourages visiting nhftb.org/finder. Your Illinois car donation helps fund the kind of guidance that can make complicated benefit systems easier to navigate.
Receive the Tax Paperwork for Your Donation
Because Heritage for the Blind is a recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit, EIN 58-2164446, your donation may be tax deductible if you itemize deductions on your federal tax return. For vehicles sold for more than $500, the deduction generally equals the gross vehicle sale price, and IRS Form 1098-C is issued for your records. Donors should keep all donation paperwork and consult a tax professional for personal tax advice. The process is designed to give you both mission confidence and the documentation you need after your Illinois vehicle is sold.
Key facts about car donation
Heritage for the Blind is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, EIN 58-2164446.
100-percent of vehicle proceeds go to Heritage for the Blind to support mission services.
Free towing is available for qualifying vehicle donations throughout Illinois communities.
For vehicles sold over $500, donors receive IRS Form 1098-C for tax records.
Donors who itemize may be eligible to deduct their charitable vehicle donation.
Benefit eligibility can be explored through Heritage for the Blind at nhftb.org/finder.