Are you in the market for a used vehicle? Don’t forget to complete a $2 PPSR search before you buy – you never know what it could be hiding.
Just like mechanical and registration checks, doing a PPSR search immediately before you buy can give you additional peace of mind.
While checking if the car is debt-free and safe from possible repossession, a $2 PPSR search pulls data about the vehicle from the National Exchange of Vehicle and Driver Information System (NEVDIS) if it is available at the time of your search. This can tell you if the car has previously been reported as a write-off, which often happens after large weather events such as floods, fires and hailstorms.
There are two types of write-offs recorded in NEVDIS that may appear on a PPSR search certificate if NEVDIS is available at the time of your search – statutory write-offs and repairable write-offs.
Statutory write-offs are unable to be re-registered and can only be used as spare parts. A car is generally classed as a statutory write-off because it would be unsafe to repair it. This might be due to structural damage (like a bent chassis) or extensive damage.
If you buy a car that's a statutory write-off, you won't be able to get it road registered, even if you repair it.
Repairable write-offs are generally classed as a write-off because the repairs needed are likely to cost more than the market value of the car (like hail damage). In some states and territories, repairable write-offs can be repaired to a particular standard, assessed and re-registered.
It's important that you check with your local road transport authority on how they treat these cars before purchasing a repairable write-off – you may find it difficult to register or insure a car that has been classed as a repairable write-off.
If your search returns a result for a write-off, it will provide information about the incident which caused the write-off, the damage location and the severity of the damage.
More information about the types of write-off codes is available at Understanding written-off codes.
Remember, if a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. Storm damaged cars are often sold at a reduced price due to the challenges of registering and insuring them. To learn more about the process of registering a previously written-off car in your state, contact your relevant road transport authority.
Written off, stolen, make and model details are provided by state and territory road agencies and police. They do this via a database known as the National Exchange of Vehicle and Driver Information System (NEVDIS).
NEVDIS data is not always available or up-to-date when you do a search of a motor vehicle on the PPSR.
The PPSR interfaces with NEVDIS to provide additional information (where available) on motor vehicles (including if they have been reported as stolen (other than in Tasmania) or written off) when registrations are made against specific motor vehicles as collateral, and when searches of specific motor vehicles are conducted. The PPSR does not store or maintain NEVDIS data, and this data is not managed by the PPSR. The PPSR is not able to provide further details of, or correct mistakes in, NEVDIS data. State and territory road agencies and police are the source of NEVDIS data and the primary point of contact for enquiries, errors and corrections.
The absence of NEVDIS data from a PPSR search certificate or verification certificate does not affect the data on the PPSR in relation to security interests. The PPSR does not provide refunds when NEVDIS data is not available or up-to-date. NEVDIS data is made available without any representation or warranty of any kind regarding its completeness or accuracy.
Known NEVDIS outages are published on our website at PPSR availability.