What Autopilot Covers (and What It Doesn't)

Tickets we contest

Each line is a real defense template our system pulls when it sees that violation code.

• Street cleaning
  Chicago Municipal Code 9-64-010 — $60 fine.
• Snow / winter overnight ban
  9-64-020 — $60 fine. 3am–7am, Dec 1 – Apr 1.
• Expired city sticker (wheel tax)
  9-64-125 — exemption + display-grace-period defense.
• Expired license plates
  9-76-160 / 9-80-190 — registration-status challenge.
• Missing / obstructed plate
  9-80-040 — compliance-corrected defense.
• Residential permit zone
  9-64-070 — $75 fine. Zone-boundary + signage challenge.
• Expired meter / ParkChicago
  9-64-170 / 9-64-190 — meter maintenance + ParkChicago payment record.
• Fire hydrant
  9-64-130 — distance-measurement challenge.
• Disabled-accessible zone
  9-64-180 — designation + visibility challenge.
• Double parking
  9-64-110 — loading/unloading exception.
• Parking prohibited / standing zone
  9-64-040 — signage + temporary-restriction notice.
• Bus lane camera
  9-12-060 — automated-camera-accuracy challenge.
• Red-light camera
  9-102-010 — yellow-light timing + identification challenge. (Excluded from Beat-It-Or-It’s-Free Guarantee.)
• Speed camera
  9-102-020 / 9-101-020 — Children’s-Safety-Zone designation challenge. (Excluded from Beat-It-Or-It’s-Free Guarantee.)
• Anything else with a valid Chicago violation code
  Generic burden-of-proof letter — the City must produce documentation establishing the violation occurred.

Tickets we don't handle

These are real problems, but they need a different tool than ours.

• Moving violations issued by a police officer
  Speeding stops, illegal turns, running a red light in person. These go to Illinois traffic court, not the Chicago parking administrative hearing — different forum, different process, sometimes a lawyer.
• DUI or criminal traffic charges
  You need an attorney, not a parking-ticket service. We can refer you.
• Tickets from outside the City of Chicago
  Suburbs (Evanston, Oak Park, Cicero, etc.), other Illinois cities, and out-of-state tickets use different ordinances and hearing systems. We only contest City of Chicago citations.
• Illinois Tollway / I-PASS violations
  Toll evasion notices are issued by the Illinois Tollway Authority, not the City. Different agency, different appeal process.
• Tickets already past the 21-day contest deadline
  Chicago Municipal Code gives 21 days from issue date to contest by mail. Once that window closes, the ticket is in default and the legal options narrow sharply.
• Tickets already adjudicated, in collections, or at boot/tow stage
  If the City has already heard and decided the ticket, sent it to a collections agency, or you’re booted/towed, contesting is no longer the right tool. The remedies at that stage are payment plans, motion to vacate, or a hearing-officer review request.
• The fine itself
  We contest tickets to try to get them dismissed. We don’t pay tickets for you, and we don’t reimburse fines that the City sustains.
• Towing, storage, and boot-release fees
  Those are separate charges from the underlying ticket and are not part of the administrative hearing.
• Emissions, title, or vehicle-inspection issues
  These are handled by the Illinois Secretary of State and IL EPA, not the City.
• Insurance claims or accident reports
  Out of scope.

The fine print

• We contest by mail-in administrative hearing. Chicago's own data shows mail-in contests win at roughly 57%, several times the in-person rate.
• The legal contest deadline is 21 days from the ticket's issue date. If you submit a ticket close to that deadline we'll still try, but the window may already be gone.
• Red-light and speed camera tickets are contested, but they are excluded from the Beat-It-Or-It’s-Free Guarantee — camera tickets are statistically the hardest type to win.
• We are not a law firm and do not provide legal advice. For moving violations, DUI, or criminal traffic, you should hire an attorney.