Essential Documents for New Clients: A Toolkit for Financial Institutions
The "Essential Documents for New Clients" refers to the set of documents that help new clients understand their full financial obligations, what they can expect from the institution, and what to do if they experience problems along the way. Institutions should provide the Essential Documents to clients prior to the first loan disbursement, and should include the following documents, at a minimum:
- Full loan contract;
- Welcome letter;
- Institutional pledge to clients;
- Loan summary and repayment schedule;
- Complaints information handout;
- Data privacy agreement – full version;
- Data privacy agreement - summary;
- Consent form for sharing client data;
- Delinquency information;
- Client and institution responsibilities chart.
The kit includes examples of each of the documents listed above, with the exception of the loan document and loan document summary (however, guidelines are provided for these documents). Financial service providers can review each of the documents in this tool when developing or improving their own new client welcome documents. The "Essential Documents for New Clients" is necessary for transparent communication to new clients. It can also improve customer service, and may reduce problems that arise from clients forgetting or missing information once they go home.
