How to check finance owing on a car (PPSR)

The risk

A car can have money owing on it even if the person selling it has the keys, the papers and a believable story. If the finance company has a claim on the car and the debt is not paid, they may be able to recover it, even from a later owner who did nothing wrong. That is the single biggest financial risk in any private deal, and swaps are no different.

What the PPSR is

The Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR) is the national register run by the Australian Government. Searching a car by its VIN there is the standard way to see whether anyone has registered a financial interest in it. A search certificate also reports whether the car has been recorded as written off or reported stolen, depending on the type of search.

How to run a check

• Get the 17-character VIN from the car itself (usually on the compliance plate or the base of the windscreen) and check it matches the registration papers.
• Search the VIN on the official PPSR website and pay the small search fee.
• Keep the certificate. It records the date and time of the search.
• Do the check again close to the day you hand over the car if there is a delay, because the position can change.

If the check shows money owing

Do not go ahead until it is cleared. The safest options are for the owner to pay out the loan and get written proof the finance company has removed its interest, or to settle the payout at a bank or lender together so that the debt is cleared at the same moment the car changes hands.

Ask your swap partner to check yours too

Run it for the car you are getting, and be ready to show a clear result for the car you are giving. Being open about it builds trust and makes the whole swap easier.

A note on this guide

This is general information, not financial or legal advice. Use the official PPSR website for how searches work and what they cost.