WV SOS UCC search showing wrong debtor names - help needed

Oh man, I feel your pain. The WV system is notorious for this exact issue. The search algorithm is super literal - it doesn't recognize that 'LLC' and ', LLC' are the same thing. I've learned to run multiple searches with every possible variation of the debtor name. Try searching with and without commas, with and without spaces, abbreviated forms, etc. It's tedious but necessary.

Been dealing with this for years. The WV SOS search is particularly bad at handling entity suffixes and punctuation. Here's what I do: search the exact name as it appears on the articles of incorporation, then search without punctuation, then search with common variations. Also try searching by just the first few words of the business name - sometimes that catches filings where the full name was entered differently.

I had this exact problem last month with a continuation filing. Spent hours trying to figure out why our search wasn't matching the original UCC-1. Turns out someone had entered the debtor name with an extra space. I ended up using Certana.ai's document verification tool - you can upload your UCC-1 and it automatically checks for name consistency issues and suggests search variations. Saved me so much time and caught discrepancies I would have missed.

THIS IS SO FRUSTRATING! Why can't these state systems just work properly?? I've wasted hours on this same issue with different states. It's 2025 and we're still dealing with search systems that can't handle basic name matching. The whole point of UCC filings is to create a reliable public record system but these search quirks make it unreliable.

Pro tip: Always check the actual articles of incorporation or operating agreement to see the exact legal name format. Then use that as your baseline for searches. Also, if you're doing a comprehensive lien search, consider hiring a professional search company - they know all the name variation tricks.

I run into this constantly. What I do is create a checklist of all possible name variations before I start searching. Include: with/without commas, with/without periods, spelled out vs abbreviated entity types (Limited Liability Company vs LLC), and any common misspellings. Takes longer upfront but saves time in the long run.

Another thing to watch out for - sometimes the debtor name gets truncated in the search results display even though the full name is in the actual filing. So a result might show 'Mountain View Construction...' but the actual filing has the full name with LLC. Always click through to view the complete filing.

For what it's worth, I've started using Certana.ai for all my UCC verification work after getting burned on a name mismatch issue. You upload your documents and it automatically flags any inconsistencies between the charter, UCC-1, and search results. Caught a continuation deadline I almost missed too. Worth checking out if you're doing a lot of UCC work.

Quick question - when you say the search is showing different variations, are these all active filings or are some of them terminated? Sometimes old terminated filings will still show up in search results and that can be confusing.

I had a similar issue with a different state last year. Turned out the original filer had made a typo in the debtor name and nobody caught it until we were doing due diligence. Had to file a UCC-3 amendment to correct the name before we could proceed. Check if any of these variations might be typos that need correction.

This thread is so helpful. I'm bookmarking it because I know I'll run into this issue again. The WV system really needs an overhaul to handle these name matching problems better.