This was posted 4 years 4 months 13 days ago, and might be an out-dated deal.

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PPSR/REVS Vehicle Check - $2 @ PPSR.gov.au

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PPSR/REVS Vehicle Check - $2 @ PPSR.gov.au
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spackbace on 13/12/2019 - 11:42 transact.ppsr.gov.au (3760 clicks)
Last edited 13/12/2019 - 11:42

As has been posted before, this is something that should be known more, particularly going into the holiday season and people shopping around for used cars.

Again, I'm also posting this because I just caught a potential trade-in that a PPSR check showed as Repairable Write-Off. This vehicle is on Gumtree without mention of that fact. A simple $2 is all it takes to save yourself a lot of hassle!

So, if you've seen this before, good on you :) If you haven't, bookmark it and check it when you go to buy a car!

The PPSR is used to find out if there's any money owing on a car, or if it's previously been written off.

This is the (new) normal price, there's no denying that, however many people don't realise how cheap and easy the service is. Many sites offer the same thing for $10 or more, when the standard government price is considerably less!

A few horror stories in the forums lately would've been sorted very early on if they had've consulted this site before buying/putting a deposit down.

Bookmark the site, after test driving the car you're looking at, sit in your car and generate the check, then decide from there if you want to purchase the car.

If deal link doesn't work, click through the main page here

Automotive PPSR

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closed Comments

  • orangetrain on 13/12/2019 - 11:44
    -5

    Why does it cost $2? Libertarian measure?

    • pennypincher98 on 13/12/2019 - 11:47
      +13

      Depending on what you want to hear it's either a small price to pay for peace of mind or another way the government can earn a buck.

      • nico8amy on 13/12/2019 - 11:57
        +20

        It cost money to save data and provide internet access.

        • resisting the urge on 04/01/2020 - 12:11

          Maybe it is because 70% of us will, when push comes to shove, fork out $2 for data the public paid the government to collect on its behalf. And the wretches feel they can go on claiming they are providing the services the people want.

          $2 goes nowhere towards paying for all the overpaid bureaucrats, pollies and gov infrastructure, hordes of outsourced contracting providers, the mlargest IT companies charging the highest prices to provide the worst over-designed, bug-ridden, untested solutions and then 10x more than all that to start (but never finish) fixing it.

          Access to this publicly owned data is restricted for the purposes of collecting personal data which users (mostly unwittingly) provide and (pay) to permanently store on gov systems, and others which have their noses in the 'Great Datatrough'.

          I don't know why people, least of all OzBargainers, think they should pay for access to data we own and pay and collect, especially when it is harvested and stored without clear purpose, never deleted, and inevitably shared and abused.

      • ATangk on 13/12/2019 - 12:39
        +22

        Well, $2 surely beats those other 'providers' that try to charge you 20-30 even $40 to do the same thing.

    • Caped Baldy on 13/12/2019 - 12:09
      +35

      It's also to prevent people being a nuisance and submitting applications for every number under the sun.

        • Trance N Dance on 13/12/2019 - 17:19

          If anything this is a progressive tax as a whole considering you need to have more money to be able to buy a car. (I'll cede that it's regressive in the context of car buyers only)
          This puts the onus on providing revenue to operate this service on those who actually use it rather than everyone.)

          • orangetrain on 13/12/2019 - 17:34
            -2

            @Trance N Dance: The cost recovery measure based on use is a great idea in theory but having a cost, even $2 will cause people to second guess checks "Car looks alright". Why not free?

            As mentioned elsewhere, the costs of not doing PPSR is potentially severe. Leading to loss of wealth, etc. Which is why I think it is important for society for PPSR to be free.

            I know its $2 but cmon, your same argument was used on introduction of tolls to roads and now Sydney is one of the top places in the world with the number of tolls. "Its to maintain roads! Its fine to clog up and go on shitty side streets if you dont want to pay!"

            It looks like based on downvotes, that posters like being nickle n dimed by the government. I hope they earn more than the average to sustain these PAYG taxes because this trend will continue.

    • BeefBiryani on 13/12/2019 - 13:38

      Orange train metro?

  • codename47 on 13/12/2019 - 11:48
    +16

    I have been using PPSR for long time now. $2 can save you from buying an accidental / written off cars.
    Recent example: Someone listed a 2010 Mazda 6 for $8500 and said he is going back to overseas for good. My mate was interested in that so I asked him to do a quick PPSR and found that car was written off multiple times.

    So he ended up buying a 2012 Ford Focus Auto with 112k kms for $8k including RWC

    • Muzeeb on 13/12/2019 - 12:04
      +50

      2012 Ford Focus Auto with 112k kms for $8k including RWC

      Probably better off with the Mazda lol

      • NedStark102 on 13/12/2019 - 12:19
        +2

        gg transmission

      • ThatYodaGuy on 13/12/2019 - 12:20
        +1

        Friend of mine just tried to have her Ford Focus Auto written-off over the clutch issue. Had the clutch replaced three times, as two replacements were faulty. Traded in for a Mazda 3.

        • Dean29 on 13/12/2019 - 14:19
          +2

          Had my 2012 Fiesta auto 'bought back' by Ford after submitting a complaint

      • ESEMCE on 13/12/2019 - 12:22
        +1

        only probably?

      • codename47 on 13/12/2019 - 14:07

        Haha I know what you mean Holden / Fords aren't in the list of reliable vehicles.

        • Muzeeb on 13/12/2019 - 14:48

          Yes they are very reliable just not the LW-II series Focus automatic petrol. They are notorious lemons. But you and your friend would have Googled it as part of your research so I guess you knew the risks.

    • Blue Cat on 13/12/2019 - 13:04
      +4

      he ended up buying a 2012 Ford Focus Auto

      Why are you saying it like it's a good thing?
      RIP Wallet

    • BargainKen on 13/12/2019 - 14:14

      Written off multiple times?

    • nuno on 14/12/2019 - 13:57
      +1

      You got to love the 'going overseas..must sell ' ads.

    • Solrak on 09/01/2020 - 16:39

      Hope it wasn't the Focus with the Powershift (Powershit) DCT. Your friend will be going through clutch packs like hot dinners!

  • clubhonda on 13/12/2019 - 11:49
    +13

    Also be aware that there's a lot of fake commercial sites that try to take advantage of the confusion like ppsr.com that overcharges you. Avoid those scummy websites.

    I dont know why the government doesn't issue take down demands to those sites.

    • Agret on 13/12/2019 - 14:17

      Take down demands? Do they take your money and not provide the ppsr report? I mean ethically the service is shit since you're just paying someone to copy paste it into a web form for you but legally you do get what you have paid for.

      • rickdwp on 14/12/2019 - 10:50

        Actually slightly worse then that….the third party dodgy likes of ppsr.com use a 3rd party API that interfaces with NEVDIS that costs an average of 15-30 cents per look up

        • [Deactivated] on 15/12/2019 - 10:28

          ACCC has cracked down on companies doing similar things, ie overcharging for late payment, overpriced fees for minor services. This is no different. They are largely preying on people's ignorance.

    • Drogo on 17/12/2019 - 08:29

      Same thing for ABN renewals. The government doesn't seem to care.

  • sekosuskun on 13/12/2019 - 11:53
    +4

    Nothing wrong with Repairable Write-Off cars, if it's been rectified correctly. And they are also cheaper then equivalent cars. You can find stolen cars, no repair required for them and cheaper then no VIV cars. Just keep in mind it is not easy to pass VIV check.

    • Agret on 13/12/2019 - 14:19
      +1

      Much harder to pass VIV than a RWC that's for sure. I bought a VIV car and haven't had any issues with it related to the repairs (the ppsr showed rear corner damage so it must've been clipped by someone), have had my car on a hoist a few times and you can barely spot that it was repaired.

    • Charity on 13/12/2019 - 21:37

      Exactly this. The keyword is Repairable.

      Having said that, since the market is clouded in ignorance, no point paying a fair value for the car either. Know what you a looking at, and buy it cheap, you'll be laughing. :D

    • rickdwp on 14/12/2019 - 10:51

      You aren't wrong….BUT it's often not worth it and it makes reselling a pain in the but. You really need to be saving at least 40% to be worth the future hassle/loss

  • deme on 13/12/2019 - 11:53

    I forget about this thanks for the reminder

  • newbiesh on 13/12/2019 - 11:54

    Nice got one for my car as it's cheap

    • [Deactivated] on 13/12/2019 - 12:44
      +6

      Thanks, got 2

  • easternculture on 13/12/2019 - 11:54
    +1

    This actually saved me. Was about to buy a car a few months ago and turned out to be a repairable write-off heavy panel from another state 😂

    • Lemonbarley on 13/12/2019 - 11:57

      Hmm what's wrong with repairable write-offs though? I got my second hand car which was a write off from years ago, I figured if it's still running fine for so many years after the repair, it must fine. It is.

      • khepri on 13/12/2019 - 12:01
        +11

        If it's declared up front in the advertisement then you purchase knowing that information. It is when it is withheld and you agree on a price under the impression the car has not been in a serious accident. $2 for an awful lot of piece of mind.

      • easternculture on 13/12/2019 - 12:23
        +7

        The resale value is significantly lower with repairable write-off's especially if you are buying newer cars.

        Also from my understanding, little to no dealers with accept the car as a trade in

        • spackbace on 13/12/2019 - 12:37
          +9

          And insurance issues

      • Caped Baldy on 13/12/2019 - 12:26
        +2

        It'll be fine until a crash. If a section is repaired there is a point of weakness which due to it's loss of strength could literally cost someone's life.

        • [Deactivated] on 15/12/2019 - 10:36
          -1

          Ridiculous generalisation. They aren't cut and shuts. Depends on the reason for the write-off and the quality of the repair.

        • [Deactivated] on 15/12/2019 - 19:44

          A neg but nothing to back up your comment? Understandable because it displays total ignorance of what many repairable write-offs are.

        • Solrak on 09/01/2020 - 16:52

          Yeah that's rubbish. Not all cars are seriously damaged to be classified as a repairable write-offs. If the damage is structural then it should be classed as a stat write-off, good for parts only. A friend of mine had a 2 year old Nissan Maxima wriiten off in the hale storms in Perth a few years back. Hale broke a window and water ingressed into the wiring loom and ECU causing multiple faults. That along with dents on the bodywork wrote off the car. He bought the car back, replaced the ECU and part of the wiring loom from a scrap yard and drove around with the dents/dimples in the car.

  • lysp on 13/12/2019 - 11:54
    +2

    This is the (new) normal price, there's no denying that, however many people don't realise how cheap and easy the service is. Many sites offer the same thing for $10 or more, when the standard government price is considerably less!

    So what you're saying is someone takes the $10 and spends $2 on the gov site and pockets the $8?

    Essentially charges $8 for an email.

    • ATangk on 13/12/2019 - 12:40
      +7

      Ive seen websites 'charge' $39 for it…

      • Tacooo on 14/12/2019 - 02:56
        +1

        What does 'charge' mean in this context? Do they not actually charge you?

  • Maxxiz on 13/12/2019 - 11:55
    +4

    Good post, good to share this.
    Have used PPSR for years, and for $2 its a no brainer when looking at buying used cars. Be very careful when entering the VIN etc, one incorrect character will return a null report and still charge you… apparently….

    As said, be cautious of all the knock off sites that basically just polish up this same report for between $10 and $30. Same advice goes to National Criminal Record Checks, only go from the gov sites/police sites, there's plenty of third party companies that basically act as a third party and charge more.

    • codename47 on 13/12/2019 - 11:58

      And older cars pre 1989 won't show anything either. We were checking the Porsche Listed as 1992 model but was actually an older 1980s Porsche with facelift job, PPSR had no records for it.

      • Muzeeb on 13/12/2019 - 12:12
        -3

        You were in the market for a 911 and couldn't identify which generation?

        I'm guessing a G body trying to look like a 964.

    • Agret on 13/12/2019 - 14:22

      Those police record check sites get in with employers. My mum does home care visits and needs to refresh hers every so often and the company will only do it through a certain third party system. It's like 2.5x the cost of doing it through the police website directly so I guess the employer is getting some sort of referral payment.

    • pennypincher98 on 13/12/2019 - 12:05
      +2

      It hasn't actually always been $2, if you bothered to click the link it was always $3.40.

      Do you not think $2 to find out whether a used car is written off or not is a bargain?

      • beefsandwich on 13/12/2019 - 12:32
        -2

        Did you click the link? It takes you to a notice of scheduled maintenance.

        The previous OzB links are well over a year old. PPSR checks have been $2 since then. The transfer of ownership forms even have a checkbox to indicate you have completed a PPSR check before taking ownership of the vehicle or trailer or whatever. Not a bargain, not some hidden secret.

        • spackbace on 13/12/2019 - 12:37
          +1

          It takes you to a notice of scheduled maintenance.

          On Saturday evening, what's your point?

          Hitting continue goes into the search…

          • beefsandwich on 13/12/2019 - 12:38

            @spackbace: pennypincher98 above said 'if you bothere to click the link it was always $3.40.'

            Your link to this deal is a page talking about scheduled maintenance with no mention of previous pricing. Neither does the link to the main page, for that matter.

            • pennypincher98 on 13/12/2019 - 13:51

              @beefsandwich: Did you bother to read the first sentence? Click on one of the orange links - you'll see it right there in the title.

              • Tiggrrrrr on 13/12/2019 - 14:04
                +2

                @pennypincher98: It has been $2 for over a year.

                Note that $2 is only if you have the VIN.

      • Maz78 on 13/12/2019 - 15:20
        +1

        Did I say it wasn't worth using the service?
        and it has been $2 if you have vehicle info.

    • Moderatorscrimshaw on 13/12/2019 - 13:10

      Protip:

      For anyone that no longer wishes to see PPSR.gov deals or reminders in the future, you can always use the Hide button as shown to add it to your block list.

      You can also customize your front page too; just go into your account Settings => Deals and adjust the sliders to suit your preference.

    • dcash on 13/12/2019 - 17:02

      The last time I did a REVS check it was free, so definitely doesn't sound like a bargain for $2.

    • [Deactivated] on 15/12/2019 - 11:41

      As handy as the reminder may be for those who aren't aware, I agree. What's next, a reminder that books are free to borrow from libraries? That various doctors and medical practices bulk bill? That asking for generic drugs from the chemist will save you a bundle? That using the government-provided online tax return tool can save you plenty (for straightforward returns)? That Woolworths gift cards are 5% off from the Woollies website, available to everyone - no memberships required?

      Iirc PPSR used to be free a few years back before it was consolidated under the Fed Govt - possibly depended on your state. At $2 it's a bargain and and absolute MUST HAVE for anyone buying a vehicle privately.

  • citybargainhunter on 13/12/2019 - 11:58
    +1

    Thanks for sharing

  • Vancomycin 1000mg on 13/12/2019 - 12:00
    +1

    The amount of repaired write of vehicles in Perth is insane. I was looking to buy a car for my brother and literally every car that had a odd year number plates were written off and repaired. For these ones I didn't even check the PPSR, just asked over the phone. The 8 cars that I had a look at, 5 of them were written off and repaired again.

    My advice to everyone, please check the PPSR and get a mechanic to do pre purchase inspection. As previously I bought a 2011 Mitsubishi Lancer that were written and registered but later on had issues with electrical components and Airbag sensors.

    • ATangk on 13/12/2019 - 12:42
      +2

      sometimes manufacturers just list a whole load of hail damaged cars as repairable writeoffs. It'll only be cosmetic hail damage but its all business reasons for them.

  • kronicmacstigator on 13/12/2019 - 12:02
    +3

    Be warned, I did one before purchasing my last car. Only a year and a half later (after purchase) was it listed as stolen by the pigs from NSW.

    Now I have a $15000 garage ornament! I call them pigs because despite 20+ phone calls, sending them multiple official purchase receipts from a huge national vehicle retailer, not to mention numerous emails I'm still yet to receive a response.

    I'm not criminally liable but I'm asking for details off them so I can kick start a civil claim. Nothing…

    • Thranrond on 13/12/2019 - 12:43
      +6

      Don’t know why this is being downvoted (perhaps the unnecessary inflammatory words) but similar thing happened to me.

      The PSPR reports are not always accurate.

      • em on 13/12/2019 - 15:53
        +1

        They are as accurate as they can be, much like criminal history screening.

    • Slugoid on 13/12/2019 - 13:04
      +1

      I'm interested as to who can report a car as stolen? I doubt anyone can report any car as stolen. I also doubt that police with withhold a vehicle as stolen and not report to PPSR for over a year. So here's my take:

      1. Car was not properly transferred during the purchase, so car still belong to owner despite proof of purchase. Previous owner reports the car as being stolen.

      2. Car has finance under previous owner. Previous owner does a runner. Finance company reports car as stolen, since car and previous owner cannot be located.

    • Trance N Dance on 13/12/2019 - 17:24

      FoI request for the police report related to the initial report of the car being stolen.

      • kronicmacstigator on 14/12/2019 - 11:59

        Trying but NSW are bastards for privacy.

        • [Deactivated] on 15/12/2019 - 10:43
          -1

          Try an ombudsman?

  • Wickadz on 13/12/2019 - 12:11

    On PPSR:
    The amount of business owners/CFO's that don't know PPSR is incredible.
    If you sell goods on terms, you can protect your assets in liquidation. It doesn't have to go to liquidators.

  • c0nfus3d on 13/12/2019 - 12:13
    +3

    Don't forget that PPSR also tells you if the vehicle has any finance owing!! Have had surprises in past when the seller does not tell you this upfront. Very important thing to keep in mind. You don't want the banks to take away your new vehicle soon after you buy it!

    • ATangk on 13/12/2019 - 12:46

      I thought this was the primary reason for PPSR… Finance owing

      • c0nfus3d on 14/12/2019 - 21:03

        It was worth mentioning for anyone new in this space though since it has not been mentioned in the comments above.

  • Skramit on 13/12/2019 - 12:21

    Thanks just bought one for my car. Good to have I guess.

    • CocaKoala on 13/12/2019 - 14:01
      +3

      Not really. I can't imagine why you'd want to get a ppsr cert for your own car. It also makes no sense because the certificate shows details as of the time it was generated.

      I could get a ppsr certificate now, and then get a loan on my car tomorrow.

      A buyer must be wary of this fact and run the ppsr check at an appropriate time, but as the owner of the car,I don't see why it's good to get one just randomly.

      • Skramit on 13/12/2019 - 14:12
        +1

        It's only $2. Gives me peace of mind.

        Bargain!

        • CocaKoala on 13/12/2019 - 14:20
          +1

          Sorry, but I don't understand. It gives you peace of mind because?

          For example, I already know that no finance is owed on my car, and that it's never been in an accident (except for that one time when I ran over an old lady in the parking lot. She was taking too long to cross the road and flipped me off when I honked the fourth time), and that my car is not a write off. Why would I need a certificate to know this?

          Unless of course you've purchased used and did not run these checks at the time. Is that the case?

          • apiecost on 13/12/2019 - 18:21

            @CocaKoala: That sure was a lot of words to answer your own question eventually :)

        • elcap on 13/12/2019 - 16:12
          +1

          you should get 2 for double peace of mind!

          • CocaKoala on 13/12/2019 - 18:27
            +1

            @elcap: Or just get one every week. :-)

            • Skramit on 13/12/2019 - 19:33

              @CocaKoala: Should I get one a couple times a year just in case?

              • CocaKoala on 13/12/2019 - 19:37

                @Skramit: Mate, is that a serious question?!

                A PPSR certificate could be obtained to verify if a car has been written off, or if any finance is being owed on it. If you own a car, I would assume that you will know if you happen to write the thing off?! And that you will know if you owe finance on it and are making payments?

                Why would you obtain a certificate to know this information twice a year?

                The only situation in I imagine acquiring a PPSR certificate for a car is before I consider buying it seriously. If I set my eyes on a car (on a used car car website or such), I first ask for the vin code and run a PPSR check. If everything comes up clean, I send my mechanic to inspect the car thoroughly. If the mechanic gives me the green light, I then go and take a look at it, bargain if I've to and purchase it if I like it. I hope that's clear.

                • Skramit on 13/12/2019 - 19:44

                  @CocaKoala: But it’s only $2. That’s half a coffee!

                  • CocaKoala on 13/12/2019 - 19:50

                    @Skramit: You are correct. I think you should be getting one of those certificates at least once a month.

  • beefsandwich on 13/12/2019 - 12:27
    -2

    It's always this price. Not a bargain.

  • Thranrond on 13/12/2019 - 12:41
    +1

    Previously bought a car that had a repairable write off (something like that). It happened in 2008, didn’t show in PSPR when I bought it in 2017 but it showed up when I was selling in 2019.

    • Slugoid on 13/12/2019 - 13:09

      So the incident happened in 2008, someone didn't file it for 10 years, and in 2019 when you checked again it was reported as a repairable write off? Sounds off. Did you claim any insurance when you had the car between 2017-2019?

      I also wonder if you can have an major accident, repair the car yourself without going through insurance, and nobody would ever know it was a write off.

      • fan8956 on 13/12/2019 - 13:27
        +2

        if you repair at your own cost, I don't see any way the system could find out …

        • Slugoid on 13/12/2019 - 13:49

          Going by that logic, the only people that can and be bothered submitting a write of report is insurance companies. Cops won't care as it's nothing to do with law as such. So my guess is that this write off was filed by a smaller and (probably incompetent) insurance and never submitted to PPSR until years later. That's the only logical explanation.

      • Thranrond on 13/12/2019 - 13:40

        No I never claimed any insurance on the car.

  • DBBROS on 13/12/2019 - 12:49

    Is the ppsr report and carfacts/bikefacts (on the car/bike sales)report the same ?

  • bazingaa on 13/12/2019 - 12:54
    +1

    Before doing PPSR, you can also do a basic check at Vicroads for free if you are in Victoria

    https://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/registration/buy-sell-or-tra…

    Is there any other things to consider before buying a used car? Specially the ones with more than 200k km?

    • Agret on 13/12/2019 - 14:30
      +1

      Is there any other things to consider before buying a used car? Specially the ones with more than 200k km?

      Might be worth looking up much a replacement engine for the car sells for in case yours dies on you. Sounds scary but engines don't usually cost that much to swap over (as long as you don't have a euro car haha).

      High KMs can be a worry but once a car is over 10yrs old I'd say don't stress much, by that point even a low KM car is going to have parts wearing out. I think higher KMs is better on an older car to some degree as you know the vehicle has been in operation and parts have been lubricated through use, engine has been revved a bit, etc. If it's just left to sit and rarely driven it'll deteriorate worse.

      Gasket seals and other rubber parts don't last forever, they dry out and crack and will need replacement. The bushings will probably need replacing. Just general wear and tear stuff is what you'll want to consider when buying an older car.

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