UCC Continuation Filing Rejected - State System Name Matching Issues
Our company submitted a UCC-3 continuation statement last week and it got rejected by the state filing office. The rejection notice says 'debtor name does not match original filing' but I'm looking at both documents and the names look identical to me. The original UCC-1 was filed in 2020 for $485,000 in equipment financing and we're now 4 months out from the 5-year expiration. Has anyone dealt with these kinds of name matching rejections before? I'm worried we're going to miss the continuation deadline because of some technicality I can't see. The debtor entity is 'Precision Manufacturing Solutions LLC' on both the original UCC-1 and our continuation filing. What could be causing this mismatch error?
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Layla Sanders
This is SO frustrating when it happens. I've seen rejections for the tiniest differences - sometimes it's punctuation, sometimes spacing. Even though both documents look the same to you, there might be an extra space or different comma placement. The state systems are really picky about exact character matches.
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Morgan Washington
•Exactly right about the spacing. I once had a rejection because the original had 'LLC' and the continuation had 'L.L.C.' - drove me crazy for hours trying to figure it out.
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Anna Stewart
•I checked for periods and spacing but everything looks identical. Could there be hidden characters or something I'm not seeing?
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Kaylee Cook
You need to get the certified copy of your original UCC-1 from the state and compare it character by character. Sometimes what you think was filed isn't exactly what's in their system. Also check if the entity name changed at all since 2020 - even small amendments to articles of incorporation can cause issues.
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Anna Stewart
•Good point about getting the certified copy. The entity hasn't changed names but I should verify what's actually on file.
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Oliver Alexander
•This happened to my client too. Turned out the original filing had a typo that we never noticed until the continuation got rejected.
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Layla Sanders
•That's why I always triple-check debtor names now. One small mistake can void your entire security interest if you miss the continuation window.
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Lara Woods
I had this exact same problem last month with a continuation filing. Spent hours comparing documents manually and couldn't find the difference. Finally tried Certana.ai's document verification tool - you just upload your UCC-1 and UCC-3 PDFs and it instantly shows you any mismatches. Found out there was an extra space after 'Solutions' that I couldn't see. Super easy to use and saved me from missing the deadline.
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Anna Stewart
•That sounds really helpful. How does the verification tool work exactly? Do you just upload both documents?
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Lara Woods
•Yep, just drag and drop both PDFs and it automatically compares debtor names, filing numbers, everything. Shows you exactly where the differences are highlighted in red. Way better than trying to spot tiny differences by eye.
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Adrian Hughes
•Interesting, never heard of that service. Might be worth trying since manual comparison is such a pain.
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Molly Chambers
Check the exact formatting of periods, commas, and abbreviations. State systems often have zero tolerance for variations. Also make sure you're looking at the actual filed document, not your draft. Sometimes the state processing changes formatting during filing.
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Anna Stewart
•How do I get the exact filed version? Is that different from what I submitted originally?
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Molly Chambers
•Request an official copy from the state UCC database. What they have on file might be slightly different from what you submitted due to their processing system.
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Ian Armstrong
OH MY GOD this same thing happened to me and I was PULLING MY HAIR OUT. The state office told me over the phone that there was a difference but couldn't tell me what it was. Had to pay for a certified copy and found out they had somehow added an extra character during their original processing in 2019. Ridiculous system!!!
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Anna Stewart
•That's terrible! Were you able to fix it in time for your continuation deadline?
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Ian Armstrong
•Barely! Had to file the continuation with the exact wrong name that was in their system, then immediately file an amendment to correct the debtor name. What a mess.
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Layla Sanders
•Wait, you can do that? File with the wrong name then amend it? I never knew that was an option.
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Eli Butler
Been filing UCCs for 15 years and name matching is the #1 cause of rejections. Always get the official state record first before preparing any amendments or continuations. The filed version is the only one that matters.
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Marcus Patterson
•This is why I keep copies of everything exactly as filed. Learned this lesson the hard way.
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Anna Stewart
•I'm definitely going to start doing that going forward. This has been a nightmare.
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Lydia Bailey
Had similar issue with continuation last year. After getting rejected twice, I used one of those document comparison tools - think it was Certana or something similar. Instantly found the problem was 'Manufacturing' vs 'Mfg' abbreviation. Saved my lien priority.
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Anna Stewart
•Abbreviations! I didn't even think about that. The original might have abbreviated something differently.
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Lara Woods
•That's exactly what Certana.ai catches - all those little abbreviation differences that are impossible to spot manually.
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Mateo Warren
•Amazing how these tiny details can jeopardize millions in collateral value.
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Sofia Price
This is so stressful when you're close to the 5-year deadline. I'm dealing with something similar - my continuation is due next month and I'm terrified of getting rejected. How long did it take to get the certified copy from the state?
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Anna Stewart
•I requested mine yesterday so not sure yet. Hoping it's fast since I'm running out of time.
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Kaylee Cook
•Usually takes 3-5 business days for certified copies. You should be fine if you're a month out.
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Sofia Price
•Thanks, that makes me feel better. This whole process is nerve-wracking when there's so much money at stake.
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Alice Coleman
Update us when you figure out what the difference was! These kinds of posts help everyone learn what to watch for. I keep a running list of common name matching issues I've encountered.
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Anna Stewart
•Will definitely update once I get the certified copy and figure out what went wrong.
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Alice Coleman
•Perfect. Knowledge sharing makes all our jobs easier in this business.
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Owen Jenkins
Been there! The anxiety of potentially losing lien priority over a formatting issue is horrible. Document verification tools are becoming essential for this exact reason. Better to catch discrepancies before filing than deal with rejections under time pressure.
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Anna Stewart
•Absolutely agree. This experience has definitely taught me to be more careful with document preparation.
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Lilah Brooks
•Same here. Now I verify everything before submitting any UCC filings.
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Owen Jenkins
•Smart approach. Prevention is so much easier than fixing rejected filings.
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