Troubleshooting Failed Faxes
Let's review where to locate your failed faxes, common reasons faxes fail, and fax alternatives.
View Failed Faxes
You can review and address faxes from the Fax Alerts (At a Glance Alerts in for SOAP 1.0 faxes) and in the Fax Log (SOAP 1.0 and 2.0 have different fax logs).
- The At A Glance Section of the dashboard alerts you to failed faxes. Click Fax Alerts to open the Fax Log. All failed faxes from the previous three-months will appear on this list.
- You can also open the Fax Log from the Tools section for SOAP 1.0 failed faxes. To view the Fax Log for SOAP 2.0, click here.
- Locate the failed fax in the list. Double-check the Fax Number column to ensure the number is correct. If you want to re-fax, select the Re-fax link. If you want to remove the alert from the At a Glance section of the dashboard, select Remove from the alert column.
Common Failed Fax Reasons
Important: Because the WebPT EMR faxing solution is an integrated third-party tool, there are limits to our ability to troubleshoot on your behalf. The following reasons are the ones that Members encounter most often.
| Common Fail Reason | Solution |
| The fax number is incorrect. | Verify the number was entered correctly. If the number is correct, contact the recipient to confirm the number. |
| The recipient’s fax number is a voice-only line (does not accept faxes). | Update the recipient’s contact information to include a fax-enabled number. |
| The fax number is busy. | In situations where the number receives a lot of faxes, the fax can fail if the line is busy. WebPT will attempt sending the fax three times before it is failed. We recommend re-faxing the document from the Fax Log. SOAP 2.0 failed faxes are re-faxed from the patient’s SOAP 2.0 chart. |
| The fax request is too large. Most services can only accept files between 500KB and 3MB. eFax services accept files of 5-6MB on average. | This can occur when faxing a large file or a large number of files. We recommend breaking up the fax into smaller sections. |
| An eDoc is pushing the fax over the size limit. | Fax eDoc(s) separately, as each eDoc can be up to 4MB. |
| The recipient has blocked WebPT’s outgoing fax numbers. | Because the WebPT EMR sends so many faxes a day, systems with strict security parameters may automatically block faxes from the WebPT fax number. In this instance, the recipient will need to unblock or whitelist the WebPT fax numbers.
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How do I know what the reason is?
- Hover over the failed status in the Fax Log to reveal the failed reason and follow the recommendation.
- If you haven’t resolved the issue, check the number of pages being sent and whether a large eDoc could be pushing the fax over the size limit.
- If your faxes are not over the size limit, reach out to the recipient to determine if the fax number is correct and ensure the WebPT fax numbers above aren’t blocked.
I still can’t fax
If you have access to a fax machine, you can manually scan and fax the paperwork.
If that’s not an option, WebPT’s Document Portal is an excellent alternative to faxing. It is HIPAA-compliant and documents can be sent to any recipient with an email address. This is a very convenient and practical option, and it allows parties that are trying to cut down on paper waste or avoid keeping physical documents for security purposes to accomplish those goals.
Important: Some recipients—particularly large insurance payers—do not have the capability to receive documents from the Document Portal.