CBA Chattel Mortgage: Broker Guide

A CBA chattel mortgage is CommBank’s Equipment Loan: your client buys and owns the business vehicle or equipment, and the asset secures the loan. Commonwealth Bank of Australia is the lender. The broker application route is CommBank’s asset-finance channel, with access through its Alpha portal.

Use the asset-finance policy guides to compare lender-specific pathways. For CommBank, choose the ownership structure first, then match the asset and borrower to the relevant application pathway. A replacement purchase and refinancing an existing balloon are different transactions, with different evidence to supply.

CBA, CommBank and Chattel-Mortgage Wording

CommBank calls its chattel-mortgage product an Equipment Loan on its asset-finance broker page, as at October 2026. CBA is short for Commonwealth Bank of Australia, and CommBank is the bank’s public brand. References to Commonwealth Bank equipment finance or CBA asset finance lead to the same bank’s business-finance offering.

Asset finance is the broader category. The Equipment Loan is one ownership structure within it, alongside leases and hire purchase. These structures aren’t interchangeable.

CommBank’s explanation of business finance structures, as at October 2026, says the Equipment Loan lets the customer buy and own the asset upfront. The bank takes security over that asset. With hire purchase, the bank owns the asset during the agreement and ownership passes after the final payment.

A finance lease gives the customer use of an asset owned by the financier. Send the client’s tax and accounting questions to their qualified advisers before they choose a structure. Ownership alone doesn’t establish a tax deduction or an entitlement to a goods and services tax (GST) credit.

For the wider explanation of ownership and repayment choices, use the chattel-mortgage guide. Keep a residential enquiry within CBA home-loan policy.

Vehicles, Equipment and Business Purpose

CommBank finances new and used business cars and equipment, with the asset used mostly or entirely for business purposes. Its business car and equipment finance page carries a 1 July 2022 information date. It describes borrowing from $20,000 and using the financed asset as security.

The broker asset-finance page, as at October 2026, also describes technology and healthcare finance. Its ABCD Asset Finance pathway covers new, used and replacement assets. ABCD is the bank’s named application pathway, with its own criteria.

For ABCD, the page describes standard assets up to eight years old and equipment up to five years old. It also covers replacement of existing CommBank or other-financier asset-finance agreements and consideration of existing CommBank balloon or residual refinancing. Apply those age descriptions to ABCD, not to every CommBank facility.

Record these asset facts before seeking a transaction-specific quote:

• The make, model, build year and serial number, plus kilometres or operating hours where relevant.
• The supplier type, such as a dealer or private seller, plus the current owner.
• Whether the asset is imported, modified or requires installation before it can work.
• The business use, operating location and expected useful life, including the proposed loan term.
• Whether the request funds a purchase, replaces a financed asset or refinances an existing balance or balloon.

Ask the asset-finance team to settle the applicable pathway and any valuation or inspection condition for an unusual asset. A published category doesn’t establish acceptance of every private sale, import or installation cost. The equipment-finance guide explains how asset condition and useful life affect the transaction.

Borrower and Financial Assessment

CommBank assesses the proposed borrower and repayment capacity separately from the asset’s suitability. Its consumer-facing business-finance page, dated 1 July 2022, lists a current Australian Business Number (ABN), more than 12 months’ trading and good credit. It also excludes businesses going through bankruptcy.

The broker asset-finance page, as at October 2026, describes an ABCD pathway that can include individuals without an ABN. Keep the applicant’s entity type and selected pathway together in the file. The public business checklist isn’t a universal rule for every broker application.

For a full application, CommBank’s June 2020 broker checklist specifies borrower and ownership details. Add the business and director background, debt commitments and directors’ or guarantors’ personal financial information.

Borrowing or guaranteeing entities supply two years of accountant-prepared financial statements or tax returns, no more than 18 months old under that checklist. It also requests full account notes. Individual director or guarantor tax returns must be no more than 18 months old under that checklist.

Build the repayment assessment around existing commitments, the proposed repayment and the business’s cash-flow pattern. Include household expenses for relevant individuals.

Where repayments depend on projected income, explain the forecast assumptions. Attach the work contracts or letters of intent supporting that income.

That checklist distinguishes additional documents triggered by application parameters. Keep the published full-application pathway separate from the bank’s subsequent requests on a particular file. Obtain the applicable version through CommBank’s forms and checklists before submitting.

Invoice, Asset and Security Evidence

Match the asset’s invoice and identifiers to the proposed borrower and finance agreement before settlement. CommBank’s linked Asset Finance terms, version CTC052019, set out the customer’s obligations for the goods and security. Those terms remain linked from the bank’s product page as at October 2026.

Use a transaction pack that answers the following questions. This is a broker preparation list, and the bank’s written conditions determine which records it requires.

Question	Records to prepare
What is the client buying and paying?	Supplier quote and final invoice, with the asset description, purchase price, deposit and separately identified delivery or installation costs.
Can the seller transfer the asset?	Seller identity and ownership evidence, plus an existing financier’s payout or release documents where relevant.
Is this the asset described in the application?	Serial or vehicle identification number, build details and applicable registration records.
What supports its condition and value?	Photos, operating hours, service records and an inspection or valuation if required for the transaction.
How will the bank’s interest be protected?	Insurance evidence and any documents needed to release or establish priority over existing security.

Under clause D.7 of those terms, existing security over the property requires a priority position or release satisfactory to CommBank. Clause D.8 requires insurance by delivery, maintained through the term, with the bank’s interest noted. It also requires acceptable cover for the full insurable value and evidence when requested.

Ask for written settlement conditions before the client takes delivery or pays a supplier expecting reimbursement. Record the required insurance start date, security arrangements and who receives the funds. For installed equipment, include who owns the premises and whether the equipment can be removed.

For example, a hypothetical client buying a used machine from another business must establish that seller’s ownership and identify any existing finance. An invoice showing the price doesn’t resolve an existing financier’s claim. Send the payout and release proposal with the asset details so settlement can address that claim.

Broker Submission and Current Support

CommBank’s Alpha portal is the current asset-finance application destination for accredited brokers, as at October 2026. Open it through the official business broker hub. The bank’s Alpha information page describes online applications and access to payout quotes.

The accreditation page requires your aggregator to hold a Business Intermediary Agreement with CommBank. It also specifies at least two years’ professional broker experience, finance-industry membership and membership of an approved dispute-resolution scheme. Asset-finance professional indemnity insurance must provide at least $1 million cover.

Complete the bank’s nominee accreditation application and obtain your aggregator representative’s endorsement. The representative submits it to Commercial Broker Operations. Alpha access then has its own registration form, returned to AFBroking@cba.com.au, with a separate administrator form where an assistant needs access.

For a quote, supply the finance amount, asset and desired repayment structure. CommBank’s customer product page, dated 1 July 2022, also gives a direct quote route on 1800 277 387. Keep a direct customer enquiry distinct from a broker application lodged under your accreditation.

CommBank’s asset-finance contact directory, as at October 2026, separates the support routes:

• AFBroking@cba.com.au handles asset-finance accreditation and commission enquiries.
• AFBroker@cba.com.au handles applications, documentation requests and settlements.
• Your Business Development Executive handles Alpha access and documentation or settlement escalations.

For an asset outside the published description, send a concise escalation brief with the borrower, trading history and business use. Add the asset’s age, condition and supplier, plus the purchase or refinance purpose. State the requested amount, term and balloon, then attach the evidence supporting repayment and title.

Ask one specific question about the disputed condition, such as whether the proposed installed machine can qualify for the selected pathway. Retain the bank’s written response and settlement requirements with the application so the final quote matches the transaction.