South Carolina UCC search showing different debtor names than loan docs - filing rejected twice

This is exactly right. I learned this the hard way last year with a filing that got rejected 3 times because I was missing a period after 'Inc' that was in the corporate documents.

Wait, so if there are already UCC filings under different name variations, which one is correct? That seems like a bigger problem with the existing liens.

Good point about name changes. We had a client who changed from LLC to Inc and there were old UCC filings under both names that caused confusion during our lien search.

How do you handle it when the business entity search shows one name but existing UCC filings are under slightly different versions? Do you file under all variations to be safe?

No, don't file multiple versions. That can actually create more problems. File under the exact legal name from the current certificate of formation. If there are existing liens under different name variations, that's a separate issue the lender needs to address - those might not be properly perfected.

Never heard of this tool but sounds useful. Does it work with all states or just certain ones?

It works with any state since it's just comparing the document names against each other rather than checking against specific state databases. Really helpful for catching these kinds of punctuation issues before you submit.

Calling them directly is great advice. I've found the SC UCC staff to be pretty helpful when you explain the situation about conflicting name variations in existing filings.

Do they charge extra fees for calling to verify names, or is that part of their normal service?

No extra charge for name verification calls. They understand that rejected filings cost everyone time and money, so they're usually willing to help get it right the first time.

How many UCC-3 amendments did you have to file? That sounds expensive if there were multiple existing liens.

Three separate UCC-3s at $15 each. Not terrible but definitely adds up when you factor in the time to prepare them all.

Wait, can you actually amend old UCC filings just to fix name discrepancies, or do they need to be terminated and refiled?

You can amend for name corrections as long as the original secured party information is still accurate. It's usually cheaper than terminating and refiling everything.

We do annual reviews of all our UCC filings, especially checking for name changes and making sure continuation filings are scheduled properly. Found several discrepancies last year that could have been problems.

Annual seems like a lot of work. Do you use any automated tools for tracking this stuff?

Great outcome! Did they say anything about whether you need to worry about the incorrectly named existing liens?

They said as long as the name is 'substantially similar' and would be found in a reasonable search, the existing liens are probably still valid. But recommended having the lender's attorney review to be sure.

This thread convinced me to double-check all my pending South Carolina filings. Found two with potential name issues that I'm going to verify before submitting. Really appreciate everyone sharing their experiences.

Second this recommendation. Used it last month and it caught a missing 'Inc.' in a debtor name that I totally missed when reviewing manually.

How accurate is the matching? Does it flag minor differences that might not actually matter for filing purposes?

It flags everything that's different, but then you can use your judgment about whether it matters. Better to catch too much than miss something that causes a rejection.

I think it's because they upgraded their system and the new software is more strict about exact matches. The old system probably had more human review.

Makes sense. Automation means less flexibility but more consistency I guess.

Absolutely. I always tell new staff that the UCC filing is only as good as the name accuracy. Everything else can be perfect but a wrong name makes the whole lien potentially invalid.

That's a scary thought. How many liens out there do you think have name issues that nobody has caught yet?

Probably more than we'd like to think. That's why regular audits and verification tools are becoming essential, not optional.

Good luck! Make sure you have the entity ID number ready when you call - they can look it up faster that way.

Let us know how it goes. Always helpful to hear about other people's experiences with the SC office.