Tennessee Secretary of State UCC Search showing wrong debtor name - filing rejected twice

Thanks - I tried about 6 different variations but keep getting the same result. The LLC shows up but always with that comma. Should I file using their version or stick with what's on the loan docs?

Always go with what's in the SOS database for the filing. Your loan docs can reference either version but the UCC-1 needs to match their records exactly.

The rejection notices are helpful but sometimes they're not super clear about what specifically is wrong. Did you end up calling their office?

Yeah, I called and they walked me through it. Tennessee's office is actually pretty helpful if you can get through to someone.

Good to know - I might try calling tomorrow morning. The online portal error messages aren't giving me much to work with.

Never heard of that - does it work with Tennessee filings specifically? I've got the LLC articles of incorporation and the loan agreement.

Yeah it works with any state. Just upload your PDFs and it cross-checks everything. Super easy and catches inconsistencies you might miss manually.

That actually sounds useful. I spend way too much time manually comparing documents and still miss stuff sometimes.

That's concerning - are they behind on processing times across the board or just certain filing types?

Seemed to be mostly continuations and amendments. New filings were going through faster but still taking longer than usual.

That's a good point - I'll check for any DBAs. The business does operate under a shorter name sometimes but I assumed the LLC name would be the primary one.

The LLC legal name is what you want for the UCC-1, not any DBAs. But checking for DBAs can help you understand if there are multiple names in the system.

That's even worse - at least with a new filing you can fix it. With an amendment you're stuck with whatever was on the original.

Exactly! I might have to file a new UCC-1 and terminate the old one, which is going to be a mess with the lender.

Yikes - that's exactly what I'm trying to avoid. Really need to get this right the first time.

I'll try that - didn't think about using wildcards. Their search interface isn't the most intuitive.

Tennessee's portal is definitely not user-friendly compared to some other states. The search tips are buried in the help section.

Good advice - I have the articles but didn't think to check if the formatting exactly matches what's in the UCC search. I'll compare them side by side.

Yeah, sometimes there are subtle differences between what's in the entity database and what shows up in UCC searches. The entity documents are always the authoritative source.

This is exactly why I started using that Certana tool someone mentioned earlier. It automatically compares the entity docs with your UCC filing to catch these mismatches.

Great outcome! Thanks for following up - this will help others who run into the same issue.

So the lesson is always call when in doubt? Good to know their office is responsive.

Perfect timing - I was just about to call them myself. Glad it worked out and thanks for sharing the resolution!

Totally agree - other states have much better search interfaces that show similar names or suggest corrections.

At least Tennessee processes rejections quickly so you don't waste weeks waiting to find out there's a problem.

True, their turnaround time is pretty good. Just wish the front-end was more user-friendly.