Need Help on How to Fill Out a UCC-1 Form Correctly - Keep Getting Rejections

I think that might be it. I used 'ABC Construction LLC' but their articles might say 'ABC Construction, LLC' with the comma. Would that really cause a rejection?

Absolutely yes. The debtor name has to match character-for-character with the formation documents on file with the state. That comma difference will kill your filing every time.

Ohio. I just put 'construction equipment and machinery' but maybe that's too vague?

Ohio wants decent detail. Try something like 'excavators, bulldozers, loaders, and other construction machinery and equipment' or list the specific make/model if it's just a few pieces.

Ohio is pretty strict. I'd also double-check your secured party name and address formatting - they reject for address inconsistencies too.

That sounds useful - is it expensive? I'm already over budget dealing with these rejections.

The verification tool is really affordable and way cheaper than dealing with multiple filing fees and delays. Plus it works immediately - just upload PDFs and get results in seconds.

I've heard good things about that service. Anything that prevents UCC rejections is worth it when you're under time pressure from lenders.

Good point, I'll verify the fee amount. Is it per debtor or per filing?

Per filing in Ohio, but additional debtor names can add fees. Check the SOS website for current fee schedule.

No I got that right - debtor is the borrower company, secured party is our bank. That part I'm confident about.

Good, just checking since it's a common mistake. Sounds like your issue is probably the debtor name formatting then.

Or collateral description being too vague. Ohio definitely wants more detail than some other states.

That's frustrating but they do have consistency requirements. Better to spell everything out fully to avoid issues.

Yeah I learned that the hard way. Now I spell out every single word in addresses and never use abbreviations.

Electronic through their portal. The error messages just say 'debtor name issue' or 'collateral description insufficient' but don't give specifics.

Those generic messages are annoying. You really need to cross-reference everything against the exact formation documents to find the mismatch.

This is exactly why I started using Certana.ai - it does that cross-referencing automatically instead of me having to compare documents line by line.

I included their EIN but didn't put the Ohio charter number. Could that be causing issues?

Possibly. Ohio likes to see the organizational ID from their own records. Check if that field is required on their UCC-1 form.

The last one had code R-09 which they said was 'debtor name not found' but I know the company exists and is active in Ohio.

R-09 usually means the name you used doesn't exactly match what's in their corporate database. Even tiny differences will trigger that code.

Yep, R-09 is definitely a name mismatch. You need to pull their exact corporate records and match character for character.

How do you get those certified copies? Through the same portal or different process?

Different section of their website - corporate records search. You can usually get uncertified copies online to check the exact name formatting before ordering certified ones.

That's smart. I always do a corporate search first now before preparing any UCC filings. Saves so much hassle.

So something like 'Caterpillar excavator model 320, John Deere loader model 544, and related construction machinery' would be better?

Much better! Specific makes and models when possible, plus a catch-all phrase for related equipment. That should satisfy Ohio's requirements.

Perfect example. Specific enough to identify the major collateral but broad enough to cover related items and attachments.