UCC search Suffolk County - debtor name variations causing missed liens?
Having issues with our UCC search Suffolk County procedures and wondering if anyone else has run into this. We're a regional bank doing due diligence on a $2.8M equipment financing deal and our standard UCC search Suffolk County protocol might have gaps. The debtor operates under 'Suffolk Industrial Solutions LLC' but also has filings under 'Suffolk Industrial Solutions, LLC' (with comma) and potentially 'SIS Holdings LLC' as a trade name. Our UCC search Suffolk County results show different filings under each variation and I'm concerned we're missing critical liens that could affect our security position. The Suffolk County clerk's office search function seems to be very literal about exact name matches. Anyone dealt with similar debtor name variation issues when doing comprehensive UCC searches? I know we need to perfect our own UCC-1 but want to make sure we're not subordinate to existing liens we haven't found.
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Miguel Hernández
This is exactly why standardized UCC searches are so critical. Suffolk County's system is notoriously picky about exact matches. You need to search every possible variation - with/without commas, periods, abbreviations like 'LLC' vs 'L.L.C.' vs 'Limited Liability Company'. Also check any DBAs or trade names filed with the county. The UCC-1 forms might have slightly different debtor names than what's on the corporate records.
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Sasha Ivanov
•Absolutely right about the variations. We learned this the hard way when we missed a $450K lien because it was filed under the debtor name without the comma. Cost us big time in negotiations.
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Liam Murphy
•Wait, so if there's a typo or punctuation difference in the debtor name on the UCC-1, that could make it not show up in searches? That seems like a huge problem for the whole system.
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Amara Okafor
Suffolk County clerk's UCC database definitely requires exact matches. But here's what most people miss - you also need to check if the debtor has any recent name changes, mergers, or acquisitions. Sometimes the UCC filings are under the old entity name but the new entity is liable for the debt. We always run searches on current name plus any predecessor entities going back 3-5 years.
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KylieRose
•Good point about predecessor entities. In our case the LLC was formed in 2019 so that shouldn't be an issue, but the trade name angle is definitely something we need to dig into.
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CaptainAwesome
•This is making me paranoid about our own UCC search procedures. How do you systematically identify all the name variations without spending days on each search?
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Yuki Tanaka
•We use Certana.ai's document verification tool now - you can upload the entity's formation documents and any existing UCC filings and it automatically cross-checks for name inconsistencies and variations. Saves tons of time and catches stuff we used to miss doing manual searches.
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Esmeralda Gómez
Are you searching just Suffolk County or doing a broader New York state search? Sometimes entities file UCCs in different counties or even different states depending on where their collateral is located or where they're organized.
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KylieRose
•We're doing New York state-wide but focusing on Suffolk since that's where most of their equipment is located. Should we be looking at other states too?
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Esmeralda Gómez
•Depends on where the debtor is organized and where they have assets. If it's a Delaware LLC but operating in Suffolk County, you might need to search Delaware too for certain types of collateral.
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Klaus Schmidt
This UCC search stuff is so confusing! Why can't there just be one national database where you search once and get everything? The patchwork of different county and state systems makes no sense in 2025.
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Miguel Hernández
•It's frustrating but that's just how the UCC system evolved. Each state has its own filing office and procedures. Some states centralize at the state level, others use county systems like New York.
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Klaus Schmidt
•So if I'm understanding correctly, for a comprehensive UCC search I need to check multiple jurisdictions AND multiple name variations? This seems like it could get really expensive really fast.
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Aisha Patel
Suffolk County UCC searches have burned me before. The online system times out frequently and sometimes returns incomplete results. I've started doing both online searches and requesting paper records for critical deals. The paper trail sometimes shows filings that don't appear in the electronic system.
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LilMama23
•Really? That's concerning. How often do you find discrepancies between online and paper records?
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Aisha Patel
•Not often, but when it happens it's usually something important. Maybe 1 in 20 searches shows something additional in the paper records. Could be timing issues with when things get uploaded to the electronic system.
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Dmitri Volkov
For Suffolk Industrial Solutions specifically, you should also check if they have any financing statements filed under 'Suffolk Industrial' without the 'Solutions' part. I've seen companies abbreviate their names on UCC filings or use shortened versions. Also verify the exact spelling - is it 'Suffolk' or could there be alternate spellings?
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KylieRose
•That's a good point. I'll add 'Suffolk Industrial' to our search list. The spelling should be standard 'Suffolk' but worth double-checking the formation documents.
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Liam Murphy
•This is getting overwhelming. There are so many variations to check. Is there a systematic way to approach this?
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Gabrielle Dubois
Have you tried using any automated tools for UCC searches? We started using Certana.ai recently and it's been a game-changer. You upload the target company's documents and it automatically generates all the name variations to search for, plus it cross-references multiple databases. Found liens we would have missed doing manual searches.
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KylieRose
•Interesting, how does that work exactly? Do you still need to search each jurisdiction separately or does it combine results?
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Gabrielle Dubois
•You still need to search appropriate jurisdictions, but it helps ensure you're searching the right name variations. It caught a UCC filing where the debtor name had a middle initial that wasn't in our corporate records. Would have missed that completely doing manual searches.
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Tyrone Johnson
Suffolk County's UCC filing office is actually pretty good about responding to questions if you call them directly. They can sometimes provide guidance on search strategies for complex entity structures. Worth a phone call for a $2.8M deal.
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KylieRose
•Good suggestion. I'll give them a call tomorrow and see what they recommend for this specific entity structure.
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Ingrid Larsson
•I've had mixed results calling county filing offices. Some are helpful, others just refer you back to the online system. But worth trying for sure.
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Carlos Mendoza
Don't forget to check if Suffolk Industrial Solutions has any parent companies or subsidiaries that might have UCC filings. Sometimes the financing statements are filed against the parent entity but secured by assets of the subsidiary, or vice versa.
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KylieRose
•We did check their corporate structure but it looks like they're a standalone LLC. No parent companies or subsidiaries that we could identify.
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Carlos Mendoza
•Good. That simplifies things. But still worth verifying with the Secretary of State records to make sure there aren't any recent changes or related entities.
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Zainab Mahmoud
The comma issue is real. Had a deal where the UCC-1 was filed as 'ABC Corp' but the entity was actually 'ABC, Corp' and it created a perfection issue. We ended up having to file an amendment to correct the debtor name. Suffolk County rejected our initial UCC-1 because of the name mismatch.
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KylieRose
•Wow, Suffolk County rejected the filing? I thought they were less strict about exact matches than some other jurisdictions.
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Zainab Mahmoud
•It depends on the clerk reviewing the filing. Some are more flexible than others. But punctuation differences can definitely cause rejections, especially if there's a significant difference in how the name appears in official records.
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Ava Williams
•This is why I always use Certana.ai to verify our UCC-1 forms before filing. Upload the formation documents and the draft UCC-1 and it flags any name inconsistencies before you submit. Saves the hassle of dealing with rejected filings.
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Raj Gupta
Just went through a similar situation with a Suffolk County UCC search. Found out the debtor had filed a name change with the state but some old UCC filings were still showing under the previous name. Make sure you're searching both current and any former names. The Secretary of State website should show name change history.
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KylieRose
•Thanks for the tip. We'll check the Secretary of State records for any name changes. This entity was formed relatively recently so hopefully that won't be an issue.
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Lena Müller
•Even recently formed entities can have name changes. We had one that changed names within 6 months of formation because of trademark issues.
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