Australia
PPSR: Don’t get caught out
3 December 2018 | Minutes to read: 2

PPSR: Don’t get caught out

By William Buck

Did you register your personal property on the national register when it came into effect in 2012?

If so, it may be time to reregister your assets.

PPSR Refresher

The PPSR is a national online register allowing businesses and lenders to secure their interests over assets. PPSR covers tangible and intangible personal property such as machinery, inventory, transportation, intellectual property, shares and licenses.

The Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR) commenced on 31 January 2012; with a maximum period of seven years of registration. This means any registrations that came into effect when the PPSR commenced on 31 January 2012, will automatically deregister on 31 January 2019.

It’s important you don’t let this date slip you by. Furthermore, if you have not made use of this register previously, it may be time to register your assets.

That’s because a registration on the PPSR shows searchers that you are claiming an interest in the goods or assets you are selling on retention of title terms, or have entrusted to someone else to sell on your behalf. Therefore, if customers don’t pay, you are more likely to retrieve the good back, or their monetary value.

For buyers looking to purchase second hand property, it lets you know if other parties have an interests in the goods.

So, what does this mean for me?

Essentially, registration of security interests protects you against your customer’s insolvency and preserves your priority position against other lenders or suppliers. In our experience a registration on the PPSR can be the difference between fully recovering your goods held by third parties and completing forfeiting any claim you have to goods held by a third party, in the event a liquidator is appointed to that third party.

When registering a security interest, you will be asked to provide a duration for the registration.
Registrations in respect to goods with a serial number, such as motor vehicles or watercraft, are limited to a maximum of seven years.

There are over 10 million PPSR registrations currently on the database. As the number grows, so does the need for businesses and lenders to track and review their registrations as they run their course.

What can I do?

Now is the time to review and update your registrations! We recommend reviewing the expiry date of your current PPSR registrations and if the registration is close to expiry, take one of the following options:

1. Extend: if you need to extend the end date and nothing else, you can renew your PPSR registration using the following link: https://www.ppsr.gov.au/renew-registration
2. Amend: if you identify other details that need to be changed, you can follow the simple steps outlined in the following link: https://www.ppsr.gov.au/amend-registration
3. Discharge: if you identify registrations that are no longer needed, they can be discharged for free.

The PPSR is a great risk management tool for your business. If you would like more information on securing your property or if you need any guidance or assistance with a corporate restructuring, insolvency or a personal bankruptcy matter, please contact one of the William Buck Business Recovery Specialists.

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