South Carolina UCC filing rejected - debtor name mismatch nightmare
I'm dealing with a complete mess on a South Carolina UCC filing that got rejected twice now. Filed a UCC-1 for equipment financing on a small manufacturing company back in October, everything looked perfect when I submitted through the SC SOS portal. Two weeks later - REJECTED. Reason: "Debtor name does not match registered entity name exactly." I pulled the Articles of Incorporation again, triple-checked everything, the company name was "Advanced Metal Fabrication Solutions, LLC" on both documents. Refiled in November with extra attention to spacing and punctuation. REJECTED AGAIN. This time they said there was a "discrepancy in entity naming convention." I'm starting to panic because the loan docs are already signed and we're approaching the end of our perfection window. Has anyone dealt with South Carolina UCC rejections for name matching issues? The collateral description is solid - it's just this debtor name thing that's killing me. What am I missing here?
35 comments
Join the conversation
Caleb Bell
SC can be really picky about entity names. Did you check if there's a DBA or trade name registered that's different from the Articles? Sometimes the Secretary of State has the "official" name recorded slightly different than what shows on the Articles of Incorporation.
0 coins
Kaitlyn Jenkins
•I pulled everything from the SC business entity search and it shows the same name. But now that you mention it, I wonder if there's some formatting issue I'm not seeing.
0 coins
Danielle Campbell
•I've seen this before - sometimes it's as simple as a comma placement or whether LLC is spelled out vs abbreviated.
0 coins
Rhett Bowman
Check the exact formatting on the Certificate of Good Standing if you have one. SC sometimes has the "true" name formatting there that differs from what you see elsewhere. Also make sure you're not including any extra periods or abbreviations that don't match exactly.
0 coins
Kaitlyn Jenkins
•That's a good point. I haven't pulled a Certificate of Good Standing recently. The original formation docs are from 2019 so maybe something changed.
0 coins
Abigail Patel
•Definitely get a current Certificate. I had a similar issue in Georgia where the official name had been updated but the old Articles still showed the previous version.
0 coins
Daniel White
This is exactly why I started using Certana.ai for document verification before filing. You can upload your Articles of Incorporation PDF and your UCC-1 draft, and it instantly flags any name discrepancies between documents. Would have caught this mismatch before your first filing got rejected. The tool cross-checks all the entity information automatically.
0 coins
Kaitlyn Jenkins
•Never heard of that tool but sounds like it could have saved me weeks of headaches. Is it specifically designed for UCC filings?
0 coins
Daniel White
•Yeah, it's built for secured transaction document verification. Really helpful for catching these kinds of technical issues before they become expensive problems.
0 coins
Nolan Carter
•Interesting, I'll have to check that out. Been burned by name mismatches myself.
0 coins
Natalia Stone
I handle a lot of SC filings and they're notorious for being strict on entity names. One trick - call the UCC division directly and ask them to read you the exact name they have on file for that entity number. Sometimes there are invisible characters or spacing differences that don't show up when you copy from online searches.
0 coins
Kaitlyn Jenkins
•That's brilliant! I didn't even think about calling them. Do you have their direct number handy?
0 coins
Natalia Stone
•It's 803-734-2158 for the UCC division. Ask to speak with someone about entity name verification for UCC filings. They're usually pretty helpful.
0 coins
Tasia Synder
•I've used this approach before. Sometimes they'll even tell you exactly what's wrong with your filing over the phone.
0 coins
Selena Bautista
OMG this happened to me last month with a Delaware entity filing in SC! Turns out the company had amended their Articles two years ago and I was using the old name. The amendment wasn't showing up in the basic search results. Had to dig deeper into the filing history.
0 coins
Kaitlyn Jenkins
•How did you find the amendment? I'm starting to wonder if there's something I missed in the filing history.
0 coins
Selena Bautista
•I had to request a complete filing history from the Secretary of State. Cost like $25 but showed every document ever filed for that entity.
0 coins
Mohamed Anderson
•That's a good call. Sometimes amendments don't update the main search results immediately.
0 coins
Ellie Perry
Are you absolutely sure you're using the right entity? I once spent days trying to figure out why a UCC kept getting rejected only to discover the borrower had formed TWO similar LLCs and I was using the inactive one.
0 coins
Kaitlyn Jenkins
•Jesus, that would be my luck. I did verify the entity number matches what's on the loan docs but now I'm second-guessing everything.
0 coins
Ellie Perry
•Check the status too - make sure it's not dissolved or suspended. SC won't accept UCC filings on inactive entities.
0 coins
Landon Morgan
Pro tip from someone who's been doing this for 15 years: when SC rejects for name issues, it's usually one of three things: 1) Extra/missing punctuation, 2) Abbreviated vs spelled-out terms (LLC vs Limited Liability Company), or 3) The entity amended their name and you're using the old version. Start with #3 since that's the most common issue.
0 coins
Kaitlyn Jenkins
•This is super helpful. I'm going to request the complete filing history tomorrow morning and see if there are any amendments I missed.
0 coins
Teresa Boyd
•Yeah, name amendments are sneaky. I always pull a current Certificate of Good Standing now before any UCC filing.
0 coins
Landon Morgan
•Smart approach. The Certificate will show the current legal name exactly as it appears in state records.
0 coins
Lourdes Fox
Why is SC so much harder than other states?? I file UCCs all over the southeast and South Carolina is BY FAR the most difficult. Their portal is clunky and the rejection reasons are always vague.
0 coins
Caleb Bell
•SC has gotten stricter over the past few years. I think they had some issues with fraudulent filings so now they're super picky about everything.
0 coins
Bruno Simmons
•At least they reject quickly. Some states take weeks to tell you there's a problem.
0 coins
Aileen Rodriguez
Update us when you figure it out! I have a SC filing coming up next week and want to avoid the same problem.
0 coins
Kaitlyn Jenkins
•Will do! Planning to call them first thing Monday morning and get the exact name they have on file.
0 coins
Daniel White
•Also consider running it through Certana.ai before your next attempt - might catch whatever discrepancy is causing the rejections.
0 coins
Zane Gray
Had this exact same issue with a client's SC filing last year. Turned out the LLC had filed a name change amendment that wasn't reflected in the initial search results. Once I found the amended name and used that on the UCC-1, it went through fine. Good luck!
0 coins
Kaitlyn Jenkins
•Thanks! That seems to be the consensus - there's probably an amendment hiding somewhere in the filing history.
0 coins
Natalia Stone
•This is why I always request the complete entity file now. Saves so much time in the long run.
0 coins
Maggie Martinez
•Same here. The $25 for complete filing history is way cheaper than multiple rejection fees and the stress.
0 coins