Register your interests before 31st January, 2014.
Almost two years ago a national scheme governing security interests over most types of personal property commenced under the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth).
Personal property is widely defined by the PPS Act. With a few exceptions, it covers any property someone can own, other than land, buildings and fixtures, such as:
- goods
- plant and equipment
- cars, boats and planes
- crops, livestock
- art
- licenses, shares, accounts receivable, contract rights, and
- intellectual property
Collateral is personal property subject to a security interest. When personal property is offered as security in a lending or leasing transaction, the PPS Act refers to it as collateral. The Act determines priority between security interests in the same collateral. It is therefore important to register your security interest on the Personal Property Security Register (PPSR) as soon as possible.
Retention of title is an example of a transaction that creates a security interest, where goods are supplied or received on credit on terms that ownership does not pass until payment is made. Other transactions creating a security interest include:
- chattel mortgages
- conditional sale agreements (including an agreement to sell subject to retention of title)
- hire purchase agreements
- consignments (whether or not a commercial consignment)
- lease of goods
A transitional security interest (TSI) is an interest in personal property that existed before 30 January 2012 (when the PPS Act came into effect). The interest might either secure payment or performance of an obligation. It may also include an interest that did not exist prior to 30 January 2012 but was created under an agreement executed before that date and continued to exist after that date.
If you believe that you have an interest but are not yet registered on the PPSR, you need to do so before midnight on 31 January 2014 in order to preserve the priority status of your TSI. If you fail to do so, after 1 February 2014 any protection that the PPS Act may have given you will no longer apply.
