PPSR check SA: $2 government certificate included, from $12.95

The certificate lists every security interest registered against the VIN, with the secured party named and the date registered. It reports whether the car is recorded as stolen. It states whether the car is on the Written-Off Vehicle Register and whether the entry is statutory or repairable, with incident codes. And it prints the plate, expiry, make, model and colour held against the VIN.

For an SA car, the certificate is the detail behind the EzyReg warning. EzyReg says "stolen" or "written off" without explanation. The certificate says which, when and under what classification, and it is the only one of the two that shows finance.

The PPSR charges $2.00 for a search at ppsr.gov.au, and you can do that yourself with the full VIN. EzyReg prints only the last four digits, so you will need the seller to show you the compliance plate or the registration papers first.

We charge $12.95 to do the plate lookup, deliver the certificate unaltered and write the verdict in one sentence. We re-run free on a typo and refund if nothing arrives within 15 minutes. For $27.95 the report decodes any write-off codes, lists open recalls, adds build and identity data for newer cars and includes a free finance re-check within 14 days. The $2.00 search fee is itemised on the receipt.

South Australia allows a repairable write-off back onto registration once it passes an identity inspection. The inspection confirms that the vehicle and its major components are what the paperwork says they are, and that stolen parts were not used in the rebuild. A statutory write-off cannot be registered again in SA or anywhere else.

The PPSR entry stays after the inspection. So an Adelaide car with a repairable record and a passed inspection is legal to register and drive, and should still be priced below a comparable clean car. Ask for the inspection paperwork and the repair invoices and read the incident code: hail is a different purchase from a front-end impact or flood.

Private buyers searching from a listing are the most common hand users. Dealers must sell cars free of encumbrances and search their stock as a matter of routine. Lenders search before approving finance and register their own interest afterwards. Auction houses usually attach a certificate to each lot.

On the supply side, insurers and assessors notify South Australian write-offs, which appear on the certificate through the national data. Searching does not change a record; only the notifying party or the state can do that.

1. Enter the SA plate and select SA, or type the 17-character VIN.
2. Confirm the make, model and year we return.
3. Choose the $12.95 certificate or the $27.95 report and pay by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay.
4. Read the verdict; the certificate and its 16-digit search number arrive by email within minutes.
5. For a private sale, search again on the day you pay.

• The payout figure on any loan. Ask the secured party.
• Previous owners. South Australia does not sell owner counts to private buyers.
• Whether a repair after an identity inspection was done well.
• Service history, odometer accuracy or unreported damage.