New bankruptcy register launched

John Kavanagh
The Australian Financial Security Authority has launched a new low-cost personal insolvency search service. The online service, Bankruptcy Register Search, will provide access to extracts from AFSA's National Personal Insolvency Index.

Until now, if a member of the public wanted to search the NPII they would have to go through a search agent. The fee for access to the new Bankruptcy Register is A$12 a search, which is lower than fees charged by agents such as Veda, SAI Global and CITEC Confirm.

Information recorded on the NPII includes the name, date of birth, address and occupation on documents accepted by the Official Receiver. It also includes the type of insolvency proceedings, the date they were started and the name and details of the trustee or administrator of the proceedings.

The register will also provide an update on the current status of proceedings, such as whether person is discharged from bankruptcy or whether a creditor's petition is in progress.

The NPII does not hold information about business insolvency.

AFSA said the new register would be useful for lenders and businesses looking to minimise the risk of bad debts.