Retention of title

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This overview is a guide to the Lexis®PSL Banking & Finance content within the Retention of title subtopic, with links to the appropriate materials.

What is retention of title?

A retention of title (ROT) arrangement allows one party (the seller) to retain title to delivered goods until another party (the buyer) has paid for them in full or, where permitted to do so, sold them on to a third party. A clause providing for a retention of title arrangement is sometimes referred to as a reservation of title clause, ROT clause or a 'Romalpa' clause, after the case Aluminium Industrie Vaassen v Romalpa Aluminium. Its purpose is to protect the unpaid seller against the buyer's insolvency, giving it priority over other creditors in respect of the goods concerned. For that reason, it is considered to be a form of quasi-security (see: Types of quasi-security—overview).

For information about how quasi-security is different from security,

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