What is an ACORD 131 form and when do you use it?

The ACORD 131 — formally called the Additional Remarks Schedule — is a supplemental form used when the space on another ACORD form is not sufficient to fully answer a question or describe a situation. It is the commercial insurance equivalent of "continued on next page."

Every major ACORD form has a remarks or comments section, but those sections are small. When you need more space — for a detailed business description, a loss narrative, a list of additional locations, or any situation that doesn't fit in the standard fields — the ACORD 131 is where that information goes.

What goes on the ACORD 131

The ACORD 131 is a free-form document with a header that identifies which primary form it supplements (e.g., "ACORD 125 — Section 4 remarks") and a large text area for the additional information. Common uses include:

• Extended business description — when the ACORD 125 description field doesn't give you enough room to explain a complex business model or operations
• Loss narratives — explaining the circumstances of prior claims in more detail than the loss history section allows
• Additional locations — when an insured has more locations than the primary form has rows for
• Additional vehicles or drivers — when the vehicle or driver schedule on the primary form runs out of space
• Special endorsement requests — notes about specific coverage modifications you're requesting that don't fit neatly into the standard form fields
• Clarification of unusual operations — anything about the business that the standard form fields don't capture cleanly

The ACORD 131 vs an underwriting summary

The ACORD 131 and the underwriting summary serve different purposes and both have a place in a complete submission package.

The ACORD 131 is part of the formal application — it supplements the fields in the ACORD forms with additional information that belongs in the application itself. It is typically attached directly after the form it supplements.

The underwriting summary is a separate narrative document that tells the overall story of the risk — who the insured is, why they're a good account, and what you're asking for. It goes at the front of the package, before the ACORD forms.

For a complex account, you might use both: the underwriting summary to frame the risk for the underwriter, and one or more ACORD 131s to provide additional detail on specific form sections.

How to format the ACORD 131

The top of the ACORD 131 has reference fields that tie it back to the primary form:

• Agency name and contact
• Named insured
• Policy number (if applicable)
• Effective date
• Form reference — identify which form and which section this remarks schedule supplements

Fill in the form reference clearly: "Re: ACORD 125, Section 3 — Business Description" or "Re: ACORD 126, Section 7 — Loss History." This tells the underwriter exactly where in the application the additional information belongs.

Keep the content organized and readable. The ACORD 131 is still a formal part of the application — it should be professional, clearly structured, and easy to scan. Avoid dense paragraphs where bullet points would work better.

When not to use the ACORD 131

The ACORD 131 is for overflow from the application forms — not for information that belongs elsewhere. The overall risk narrative goes in the underwriting summary. Coverage requests go in the relevant application field or the cover letter. The ACORD 131 is specifically for situations where a standard form field doesn't have enough room.

If you find yourself using the ACORD 131 frequently for the same type of information on a specific class of account, that's often a signal that you need a more structured intake process — one that captures detailed information upfront so it's ready to flow into the application without requiring supplemental pages.

Complete submissions without the manual work

AgencyAssist collects the detail you need during intake and maps it to the right ACORD fields — so you spend less time filling in supplements.