Customer Onboarding Checklist

Look up the producer's NPN in NIPR and confirm an active resident or non-resident license for the state where the policy will be bound. CE lapses and missing non-resident appointments are the most common cause of unauthorized-transaction findings.

Pull the AMS-generated ACORD 125 and review every auto-populated field against the insured's current operations. Renewal-cycle drift in payroll, sales, and class codes is the most common cause of an inaccurate filed application.

Identify the lines on the submission and request the matching ACORD supplements: ACORD 130 for workers comp, ACORD 140 for property with an SOV, ACORD 137 for commercial auto. Note state-bureau forms in NY, NJ, DE, PA, CA, MA, MN, MI, WI, TX where NCCI does not control WC.

Screen the insured, named officers, and any additional insureds against the Treasury OFAC SDN list. A hit blocks premium acceptance and any future claim payment to that party — flag immediately to compliance.

Confirm the legal entity name and good-standing status via the Secretary of State, then match the FEIN to the W-9. DBA-only matches and dissolved entities are recurring intake errors.

Provide the GLBA initial privacy notice and the state-specific opt-out language. Vermont requires opt-in for non-affiliate sharing; California requires CCPA/CPRA-aligned disclosures for personal-lines insureds. National form letters fail state tests.

Send the written commission disclosure required by NY Reg 187, CA SB 250, and equivalent state rules for mid-market commercial accounts. Capture the insured's acknowledgment in the file.

Compare the risk against each appointed carrier's appetite and binding authority. Risks outside admitted appetite — high hazard grade, prior cancellations, distressed loss history — go to a wholesale broker on a surplus-lines basis.

Run rating in PolicyCenter, EZLynx, or the carrier's portal. Treat indications as non-binding — do not import an indication into the AMS as a quote, since binding against an indication creates E&O exposure.

Cross-check the proposed terms against the carrier's binding-authority document: line of business, hazard grade, premium ceiling, and any class restrictions. Bind-authority breaches are a leading cause of carrier rescission.

Walk the insured through coverage, limits, deductibles or SIRs, and key exclusions. Capture the chosen payment plan — direct bill, agency bill, or premium-financed — since premium financing requires a separate signed PFA before bind.

Generate the PFA with the chosen finance company, collect the down payment, and confirm the lender's power-of-attorney to cancel for non-payment. Bind cannot proceed until the signed PFA and down payment are in hand.

Create the client and policy records, link the producer of record, and set retention codes. Most states require 5–7 years of policy and claim file retention; workers comp often requires longer given lifetime medical.

Confirm each holder's required wording — additional insured, waiver of subrogation, primary and non-contributory — against the underlying contract. The most common COI error is checking 'additional insured' for a certificate holder who is only a holder.

Include the FNOL phone and email for each carrier, the agency's after-hours claims line, and the policy numbers by line. First-party claim acknowledgment windows are statutory in most states (e.g., Texas Chapter 542 — 15 business days).

Walk through the first invoice, confirm COIs are in place with all contract counterparties, and surface any mid-term endorsement needs. Catching exposure changes here avoids surprises at premium audit.