Written byThe Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR) is the national online register where lenders and suppliers record security interests over personal property such as vehicles and plant.
Also known as: PPSR, PPS register, PPSR search, PPSR registration
Key points
- It covers personal property: vehicles, machinery, boats, stock, crops and receivables, but not land.
- Registering protects the holder's priority, and an unregistered interest can be defeated if the customer fails.
- Anyone can search, and a search by VIN or serial number shows whether an interest is registered over that asset.
- It is not only for lenders: suppliers selling on retention of title terms and businesses that hire out goods register too.
- Once finance is paid out, the registration should be discharged, and it is worth checking that it has been.
How the PPSR works
The register is a government run database and everything happens online. A secured party creates a registration that describes the collateral, by serial number for vehicles and other serial-numbered goods, and separately identifies the grantor: by ACN for a company, by ABN for a trust or partnership, and by name for an individual. That registration is what makes a private agreement visible to the rest of the world.
Priority is the whole point. Where two parties claim the same goods, the register largely decides who ranks first, and an interest that was never registered can lose out entirely. That is why a lender writing a chattel mortgage registers at settlement, and why the registered party is the one able to repossess and sell if the agreement is breached.
Searching before you buy
A search takes a minute and costs a small fee. For a vehicle you search the VIN; for plant and machinery, the serial number where the goods carry one. The result shows whether an interest is registered against those goods and who holds it, and you get a certificate you can keep as evidence of the search.
This matters most in private sales. If money is still owing and the finance is not paid out at settlement, the holder may be able to recover the goods from the new owner. Dealers, financiers and brokers search as standard practice, and it is worth doing on any second hand ute, trailer or machine before money changes hands.
Registering an interest
Lenders are not the only ones who register. Suppliers selling stock on retention of title terms, businesses hiring out equipment for longer periods and anyone leasing goods can register to protect their position if a customer goes into administration. Detail matters: an error in the serial number or the grantor's identifier can make a registration ineffective when it is most needed.
Registrations run for a chosen period and can be renewed or discharged. From the borrower's side, confirm the registration comes off once the finance is repaid, because a stale entry can hold up a sale or a new facility. In equipment finance the discharge is part of the normal payout process.
Example
A civil contractor agrees to buy a second hand excavator from another business for $85,000. Before paying, they search the register using the machine's serial number and find a finance company registered against it. The seller confirms $30,000 is still owing. The contractor pays that $30,000 straight to the financier and the balance to the seller, and the financier discharges its registration. Without the search, the contractor could have paid the seller in full and still faced a claim over the machine.
Not to be confused with
- Security (collateral)
- the legal interest itself, where the register is the public record that protects it
- HPI check
- a commercial vehicle history check that reports more than a register entry alone
Frequently asked questions
What does PPSR stand for?
It stands for the Personal Property Securities Register. Personal property means almost anything other than land: cars, trucks, machinery, boats, stock, crops and receivables. The register records who has a security interest over those goods, so buyers and other lenders can find out before they commit.
How do I do a PPSR search?
Search online through the register's website. For vehicles use the VIN and for machinery the serial number. To search against the grantor instead, use a company's ACN, a trust or partnership's ABN, or an individual's name. There is a small fee per search and the result comes back immediately with a certificate showing what was registered at that moment.
What can be registered on the PPSR?
Security interests over personal property, including vehicles, plant and machinery, boats, stock, crops, livestock and receivables. Land and buildings are not covered; they are recorded on state land titles instead. Leases, hire arrangements and retention of title supply terms can also be registered.
Why should I check the PPSR before buying a used car?
Because finance owing on a vehicle can follow it. If the previous owner's loan is not paid out at settlement, the financier may have a claim over the car even though you paid the seller. A search shows any registered interest so you can insist the payout happens first.
How do I remove a PPSR registration?
The party who registered it lodges the discharge, normally after the debt is paid out. Some lenders do it automatically on final payment, others act on request. Search the register afterwards to confirm it has gone, because an old registration can complicate a later sale or refinance.
Related terms
Security (collateral)
Security (collateral) is an asset or legal interest a borrower grants a lender, which the lender can take and sell to recover the debt if the borrower defaults.
Read definitionChattel mortgage
A chattel mortgage is a business loan for a vehicle or equipment: you own the asset from settlement and the lender holds a security interest until it is repaid.
Read definitionRepossession
Repossession is the enforced recovery of goods that secure a loan, such as a car, ute or machinery, after the borrower has defaulted on the contract.
Read definitionLien
A lien is a legal right a creditor holds over another person's property, such as goods or land, as security until a debt is paid.
Read definitionHPI check
An HPI check is a vehicle history and finance check that shows whether a used car has outstanding finance registered against it, or a stolen or written-off record.
Read definitionEquipment finance
Equipment finance is business finance used to buy or lease machinery, vehicles and other equipment, where the equipment itself secures the loan or is owned by the financier.
Read definitionGo deeper
Sources
This article is general information only and is not financial advice.