The Secretary of State is alerting Tennesseans to be wary of official-looking mail asking them to pay for a copy of a UCC-1 statement.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Secretary of State announced that people should be cautious when receiving official-looking mail. This time, the scam is targeting most Tennesseans by asking them to pay for a copy of a “UCC-1 financing statement” filed against them.
The letter asks for a $107 payment for a copy of their financing statement. Nick McBride, the Knox County Register of Deeds, said if the public needs a record — the fee is much lower than that.
“The government does not come to them and tell them that they need something. That’s just not our function, we’re here to serve the public,” McBride said.
The Federal Trade Commission received more than 2.8 million fraud reports last year. McBride said part of the problem is that some of these companies may offer disclaimers on the bottom of the page — but that doesn’t ensure they are 100% legitimate.
“We’ve, we being the Tennessee Registers Association, have worked with the Attorney General and the problem is that a lot of these companies are just barely skirting the law,” McBride said.
But McBride also explained that most…
