Car title loans and auto title loans in Illinois are designed for consumers who need to borrow money only for a short length of time – generally around two weeks.  These car title loans and auto title loans in Illinois are small loans secured by a borrower’s vehicle that typically have very high interest rates. 

Tom Henmen, the Star's editorial columnist believes that although Illinois law restricts auto-title loans to a maximum of 204 percent per year, the risks to the borrowers are far greater. That is because of the real possibility the borrower will default on the overpriced loan and lose his or her car.


He believes that not only do the borrowers lose what is often their most valuable possession, but their loss of a car may make it impossible to keep a job, attend school, access health care or provide needed transportation to family members.
"to compound regulatory problems, too little is known about the lenders' operations. Seventy firms are licensed to offer title loans in Arizona, but the Arizona Banking Department does not know the volume of their activity nor the rates at which they repossess cars.

One of the few documented statistics comes from an Ilinois Appeals Court opinion in the year 2000.

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