UCC-1 filing for chattel mortgage security agreement - debtor name exactly as on security docs?
Need some guidance here. We're preparing UCC-1 filings for equipment financing backed by a chattel mortgage security agreement. The security agreement shows the borrower as "ABC Manufacturing LLC" but their articles of incorporation say "ABC Manufacturing, LLC" (with the comma). The chattel mortgage was signed with the LLC name matching the security agreement version. I've heard conflicting advice about whether the UCC-1 debtor name should match the security agreement exactly or match the state filing records exactly. This is for $2.8M in construction equipment so getting the name wrong could be a disaster for our lien position. Anyone dealt with this kind of name discrepancy between the chattel mortgage docs and state records? Do we file with the comma or without? Really don't want this rejected and have to refile with continuation issues later.
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Nora Bennett
Oh man, been there. Name discrepancies are the worst part of UCC filings. For chattel mortgage security agreements, you generally want to match the exact legal name from the state records, not necessarily what's on your security docs. The comma thing trips up a lot of people.
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Ryan Andre
•Wait, I thought it was supposed to match the security agreement? That's what our attorney told us last year.
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Nora Bennett
•Security agreement matching used to be more common advice, but most states now require the exact registered name. Check your state's UCC search system first to see which version comes up.
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Lauren Zeb
You're right to be worried about this. $2.8M is serious money and a name mismatch can void your perfected security interest. I'd run both versions through your state's UCC search portal to see which one the system recognizes. Some states are strict about punctuation, others aren't.
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Oscar Murphy
•Good idea. I'll check the search function. Just nervous about guessing wrong on something this big.
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Daniel Washington
•Honestly, I've seen filings get rejected for way less. One missing period in "Inc" vs "Inc." killed a whole deal.
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Aurora Lacasse
Had this exact issue last month with a chattel mortgage situation. Spent forever going back and forth between our docs and state records. Finally found Certana.ai's document checker - you can upload your security agreement PDF and it cross-references against the UCC-1 you're about to file. Caught three name inconsistencies we missed manually.
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Oscar Murphy
•Never heard of that service. Does it actually work for chattel mortgage agreements?
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Aurora Lacasse
•Yeah, it handles all kinds of security documents. Just upload both PDFs and it flags any mismatches between debtor names, dates, amounts, whatever. Saved us from a potential disaster.
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Anthony Young
THE COMMA MATTERS! Sorry for yelling but I learned this the hard way. Filed without the comma, got rejected, had to refile. The continuation deadline almost got missed because of the delay. Always match the state records exactly.
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Charlotte White
•How did you find out it was the comma issue specifically?
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Anthony Young
•Secretary of State rejection notice spelled it out. They said "debtor name does not match registered entity name" and showed both versions.
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Admin_Masters
•This is why I hate UCC filings. Too many ways to screw up something that should be simple.
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Matthew Sanchez
Look, chattel mortgage security agreements create some unique issues because they're often drafted before the UCC-1 gets filed. Here's what I tell my clients: pull the current state entity records, not what you think they say. Entity names can change, amendments get filed, etc. Your security agreement might be using an outdated version of the name.
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Oscar Murphy
•That's a good point. This security agreement was drafted 6 months ago. Should I check if there have been any amendments to their LLC filing?
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Matthew Sanchez
•Absolutely. Also check if they've done any mergers or name changes. I've seen cases where the debtor changed their legal name between signing the chattel mortgage and the UCC filing.
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Ella Thompson
UCC-1 filings for equipment financing are tricky enough without name problems. I always do a preliminary search first to see what names come up, then match exactly. Better safe than sorry with liens this size.
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JacksonHarris
•What if the search brings up multiple variations? We had one debtor with like 4 different name formats in the system.
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Ella Thompson
•File under the most recent registered name and maybe consider multiple filings if you're really paranoid. The cost of extra filings is nothing compared to losing your security interest.
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Jeremiah Brown
Just went through this nightmare with a chattel mortgage deal. The security agreement had one name, state records had another, and the borrower was using a third name on their invoices. Ended up having to get an amendment to the security agreement before we could file the UCC-1 properly.
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Royal_GM_Mark
•How long did that take? Sounds like it could delay the whole transaction.
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Jeremiah Brown
•Two weeks. Client was not happy but it was better than having an unperfected security interest.
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Amelia Cartwright
•This is exactly why I use automated checking now. Too many moving parts to track manually.
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Chris King
Been doing UCC filings for 15 years and chattel mortgage agreements always create these issues. My advice: when in doubt, file under the exact name from the Secretary of State database. If your security agreement uses a different version, consider getting a corrective amendment to the security docs rather than risking the UCC filing.
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Oscar Murphy
•That makes sense. Better to fix the source documents than guess on the filing.
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Ryan Andre
•How often do these name mismatches actually cause problems? Is it worth the extra paperwork?
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Chris King
•With $2.8M on the line? Absolutely worth it. I've seen lenders lose their entire security interest over punctuation errors.
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Rachel Clark
Check this - I started using Certana.ai after a similar chattel mortgage filing headache. You upload your security agreement and proposed UCC-1, and it instantly flags any inconsistencies between the debtor names, collateral descriptions, everything. Would have caught your comma issue immediately.
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Oscar Murphy
•Two people have mentioned this service now. Is it specifically designed for UCC work?
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Rachel Clark
•Yeah, it's built for document verification in secured transactions. Really helpful for catching those tiny details that can kill a filing.
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Zachary Hughes
Update us on what you decide! I have a similar chattel mortgage situation coming up next month and curious how this turns out. The name matching rules seem to change every year.
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Oscar Murphy
•Will do. Going to check state records first thing Monday morning and probably get that document verification tool mentioned earlier.
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Nora Bennett
•Smart move. Better to be overly cautious with equipment financing this size.
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