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How To Fill Out a Fax Cover Sheet in 10 Easy Steps
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Fax technology is still used regularly in order to share sensitive data and critical documents securely across key industries like healthcare, law and manufacturing. To ensure fax messages reach the intended recipient, users must include fax cover sheets. Useful templates are often provided that can simplify this process. In this article, we’ll run through what is a fax cover sheet and how to fill out a fax cover sheet.
Using this guide will help you assemble your fax messages, including the fax cover page and any necessary documents, as quickly and efficiently as possible and cover common questions like ‘How to make a cover letter for a fax?’, ‘What to put on a fax cover sheet?’ and ‘What does re mean on fax cover sheet?’.
What is a Fax Cover Sheet?
A fax cover sheet is a page faxed to a recipient before receiving the entire fax message. It helps to identify the sender and recipient of a fax message, the subject line and brief information about the content in the attached documents.
The fax cover sheet includes information about the purpose of a faxed document, including the address, fax number, phone number and the number of pages in the fax. Critically, a fax cover sheet can help senders to secure their data against unauthorized access. Fax cover sheets can be used for all sorts of purposes, such as sharing business documents, critical patient data, or even sharing resumes when job hunting. However, before sending a fax, it’s essential to understand how fax cover sheets work and what to include in them.
Why Fax Cover Sheets Are Important?
Before learning how to fill out a cover sheet, it is important to understand its significance. Here are some important benefits of fax cover sheets:
1. Protects Sensitive Information
If you are faxing a document containing sensitive information intended only for the recipient, a fax cover sheet is essential. A fax cover sheet includes a ‘Confidential’ notice, indicating that the fax is meant solely for the designated recipient. This helps to keep the content secure and confidential during transmission.
2. Helps in Identifying the Sender
The top portion of the fax cover sheet includes the sender’s information, making it easy to track the faxed documents. This allows the intended recipient to identify who sent the fax, making the process more transparent and organized.
3. Informs the Recipient about the Fax Content
The fax cover sheet provides a brief overview of the fax’s content, helping the recipient quickly understand the purpose of the fax. It includes a summary of the information being sent and its confidentiality level, making the recipient aware of the importance and sensitivity of the content.
4. Ensures Fax Reaches to Right Recipient
Faxes contain sensitive and important information that should not be accessed by unauthorized individuals. If a fax is mistakenly delivered to the wrong person, the cover sheet includes recipient information, helping guide the fax to the correct audience. This adds an extra layer of security to the transmission process.
A fax cover sheet serves multiple purposes. It identifies the sender, specifies the intended recipient, summarizes the content, and provides a level of protection for confidential and sensitive documents.
Types of Fax Cover Sheets
Before considering how to make a cover sheet for a fax, consider the purpose for which you need it. A wide range of fax cover sheets can be used for any purpose, from applying for a job to sharing medical details.
1. Standard Fax Cover Sheet
A standard or basic fax cover sheet is simply a plain fax template that can be modified for your specific purpose.
2. Professional Fax Cover Sheet
Slightly different from a standard fax cover sheet, a professional fax cover sheet is a generic template that can be used in a business context.
3. Medical Fax Cover Sheet
A medical fax cover sheet is designed for medical purposes, enabling healthcare professionals to securely share data with colleagues, patients and other providers. Medical providers can also access Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)-compliant fax cover sheets.
4. Legal Fax Cover Sheet
Legal professionals frequently share critical data relating to cases or ongoing investigations with their clients and colleagues. A legal fax cover sheet makes it easy to quickly and securely share legal data.
5. Confidential Fax Cover Sheet
This template style advises the recipient that a fax message is a private document not to be shared with anyone else.
6. Personal Fax Cover Sheet
A personal fax cover sheet is intended for non-business purposes and can cover various uses. For example, printable fax cover sheets are simple for users to print and Google Docs fax cover sheets are intended to be used in Google Docs or Gmail.
7. Urgent Fax Cover Sheet
An urgent fax cover sheet is helpful when users are time-pressed to send a vital document to a client or customer.
8. Business Fax Cover Sheet
Similar to a professional fax cover sheet, this template is ideal for businesses to plug and play fax messages.
9. Fax Cover Sheet for Financial Documents
Financial firms also often share critical data via fax messages. A fax cover sheet for financial documents allows financial professionals to easily share financial documents with clients, colleagues and other institutions.
Check out eFax’s comprehensive list of cover sheet templates.
What Information Needs To Be Included In Fax Cover Sheets?
A well-prepared fax cover sheet provides clarity and facilitates proper communication. Here is a list of common information that should be included:
- From: [Your Name]
- Fax: [Your Fax Number]
- Phone: [Your Phone Number]
- Details: [Your Company Name, Office Address, Logo]
- To: [Company/Person Receiving Fax/Receipt Job Title]
- Attn: [Specific Person Who Needs to Receive the Fax]
- Fax: [Recipient’s Fax Number]
- Phone: [Recipient’s Phone Number]
- Date: [Current Date]
- Re: [Subject/Purpose of the Fax]
- Pages: [Total Number of Pages Including the Cover Sheet]
- Confidentiality Notice: [If the fax contains sensitive information, include a confidentiality statement]
- Subject/Message [Include a brief note or message explaining the purpose and contents of the fax]
- Relevant Notes [Indicate urgency or specific actions required, such as “Please Review,” “Urgent,” etc.]
Including the above information guarantees that the fax is properly directed to the intended recipient. It helps the recipient understand the purpose and content of the fax, ensuring the transmission is complete and accurately received.
What to Put on Fax Cover Sheet
Before starting to create a fax cover sheet, it’s vital to understand what to put on it. The top of the fax cover sheet should include basic information like personal details. It must be positioned as the first page of a message, allowing the recipient to recognize the information they’ll receive. And the details within the fax cover sheet must help you direct the message to the right person.
The fax cover sheet itself can be as detailed or basic as you need it to be. However, it can be beneficial to make the cover sheet easy to understand and position information in boxes or sections that make it as straightforward as possible. Additionally, some organizations like to use boxes like ‘please recycle,’ ‘please reply,’ ‘for review’ or ‘urgent’ that point to the purpose of the fax.
How to Fill Out a Fax Cover Sheet
With that basic information understood, it’s time to begin crafting your fax message and begin thinking about what to put on a fax cover sheet. Follow our 10-step guide to filling out a fax cover sheet:
Step 1: Start with Your Contact Information
The first step in how to do a fax cover sheet is to include your contact information. This allows you to personalize your message by adding details such as your name, fax or phone number, address and email address. Some businesses print fax cover sheets on letterhead paper that include the company name, logo and taglines that make it instantly recognizable.
Step 2: Include the Recipient’s Contact Information
You then need to include the personal details of your recipient to ensure they know who the fax message is intended for. Consider including information like the recipient’s name, address or email address.
Step 3: Add the Date and Time of Transmission
Like any other form of communication, it’s important to include a timestamp on your fax message. Add the date and time at which the fax cover sheet is being sent.
Step 4: Enter the Recipient’s Fax Number
In addition to including their personal details, you should also add a recipient’s fax number to your fax cover sheet.
Step 5: Indicate the Number of Pages Attached
It’s also vital to let your recipient know how many pages are included in the fax message. This helps the recipient ensure they receive the entire message and, in the event that some pages weren’t received, let you know that some data is missing.
Step 6: Provide a Subject or Purpose for the Fax
If you’ve wondered ‘what does “re:” mean on fax cover sheets,’ it’s short for ”with regard to” or ‘regarding’. Like an email, providing a specific subject line helps the recipient understand what the message is about. The re: on fax cover sheets is useful as it explains what a fax message is about and allows users to recognize why they are receiving it.
Step 7: Specify Urgency or Priority Level (if needed)
If a fax message is urgent or has a high priority for specific recipients, it’s important to note that on the fax cover sheet. Marking a fax cover sheet with ‘urgent,’ ‘high priority’ or ‘for review’ can be useful if you require a swift response.
Step 8: Include Any Additional Comments or Notes
You can also add additional information regarding the fax, such as explaining the purpose of the message.
Step 9: Add a Confidentiality or Privacy Notice (if required)
If data within your fax message is confidential, it’s a good idea to make that obvious. Ensure you indicate that the information in the documents is confidential and consider adding confidentiality clauses to the fax cover sheet.
Step 10: Attach the Fax Cover Sheet to Your Document
Finally, don’t forget to add the fax cover sheet to your document. Ensure it’s the first page in the fax message, helping your recipient to see up front who the message is from and what it’s about.
Filling out a fax cover sheet doesn’t have to be a chore. With eFax, it’s easier, faster, and more secure than ever.
Send Faxes From Anywhere with eFax
eFax enables you to send free fax messages at any time, from anywhere and on any device. The eFax service also allows you to select from fax cover sheet templates and will walk you through the process of creating and sending fax cover sheets. eFax is also compatible with Google Docs and all email providers, allowing you to send and receive fax messages from your preferred service and on any device.
eFax provides companies that rely on faxing with a modern solution that enables them to send and receive critical documents and sensitive data. Taking faxing online offers greater convenience and simplicity over purchasing and maintaining bulky fax machines.
You can also use the fax app for iPhone to send faxes on the go, which saves employees from having to travel into the office just to use a fax machine.
FAQs Related to Filling Fax Cover Sheets
In the subject line of a fax cover sheet (Re:), include a brief note or message that explains the purpose and contents of the fax. This could also mention the urgency and confidentiality of the fax. Make sure the subject line is clear and concise to provide the recipient with a quick overview of the fax’s intent.
On a fax cover sheet, include a dedicated field labeled “Number of Pages” or “Total Pages” to indicate the total number of pages being sent, including the cover sheet. This helps the recipient verify that all pages have been received.
Yes, you can use a template to fill out a fax cover sheet. Templates are helpful as they provide a structured format, making sure all essential information is included. A cover sheet template includes sections for sender information, recipient information, fax details, and additional messages or notes.
You can add comments or notes at the bottom of the fax cover sheet after the sections for sender information, recipient information, and fax details. This section can include instructions, specific requests, or any other relevant information for the recipient.
The best practice for filling out a fax cover sheet includes, complete sender and recipient information, detailed fax information, confidentiality notice, clear and concise communication, and a consistent format.
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