Summary
Two criteria decide: the channel your correspondent accepts, and what you may eventually have to demonstrate. Email travels instantly but can remain stuck in an anti-spam filter; the fax, for its part, comes back with a transmission report produced while the two machines talk to each other.
The strengths and blind spots of each
Email does not cost a cent and lands straight in the box; but an anti-spam can stop it dead, without warning, and its read receipt stays optional. The fax, for its part, succeeds in one to two minutes on a machine that confirms the taking in of the pages; with Faxeroo, the page costs nothing and the transmission receipt is obtained as an option for €2.99 including VAT. Registered post, slow and paid, keeps the most rigorous legal framework.
Two decision criteria
Which channel does your counterpart display? An organisation that prints a fax number has already answered you. What will have to be proved, before which deadline? Some deadlines, legal or contractual, impose a precise form — often registered mail. The fax, email and post comparison reviews each situation.
Combining the channels
Nothing forbids doubling the send: the fax for speed and its report, then email or registered mail if a text demands it. Keep the receipt and the exact PDF: content dispatched and date will remain demonstrable.
Key points
- Email: speed on one side, filters on the other.
- Fax: report tied to the arrival machine.
- Registered mail: the clearest legal framework, at the price of slowness.
- The choice follows the channel accepted and the proof to be produced.