A used bus can be the best value in the industry or the most expensive mistake you make. The difference is usually what was checked before the money moved.

Check the PPSR. Before anything else.

The Personal Property Securities Register tells you whether there is finance owing on the vehicle. If there is, and it is not discharged, the financier can repossess the bus from you after you have paid for it.

A search costs a couple of dollars and takes a minute. It is the single most important thing on this list, and the one most often skipped because the seller seemed reliable.

Any dealer selling you a used bus should warrant in writing that it is free of any security interest and will discharge one at their own cost if it turns up later. If they will not put that in the contract, that tells you something.

Compliance and roadworthiness

Ask for the current compliance certificate and check the expiry. For a school bus, check whether the TS150 fitment is current and certified rather than just present.

Registration status matters more than people expect. A bus with lapsed registration cannot be demonstrated or delivered, and you find out on the morning you need it.

The service history is the vehicle history

A complete service record from a known workshop is worth more than a low odometer reading. Gaps in the record are worth asking about directly.

Structural and body checks

Look at the roof and the gutters for water ingress. Check the floor at the rear and around the wheel arches. Look at the chassis rails where they cross the suspension mounts. Rust in those places is expensive; rust in a panel is not.

What the law gives you regardless

Consumer guarantees under the Australian Consumer Law apply to a used vehicle bought from a dealer as they do to a new one, taking into account its age, price and condition. A dealer cannot sell you a bus "as is, no warranty" and make that stick.

That does not mean everything is covered. It means the vehicle has to be of acceptable quality for what it was sold as, and that a major failure entitles you to a remedy.

And ask what happens afterwards

Who supplies parts for it. Whether the seller will still take your call in six months. A cheap bus from someone who disappears is not cheap.