{"id":"acct-duplicate-invoice-checklist","audience":"accounting","category":"finance-work","track":"finance","technique":"verification","level":"intermediate","title":"Flag possible duplicate vendor invoices before payment","free":false,"task":"You're an AP specialist reviewing the Thursday payment run. Write a prompt for a checklist of at most 4 lines starting with \"- [ ]\", one per vendor group in the register. Label each \"Likely duplicate\", \"Possible duplicate\" or \"Looks routine\" and give the one fact that drove the label. Never tell anyone to void, delete or pay; the lead decides. Plain text, under 110 words.","materialLabel":"AP invoice register excerpt (attached to your prompt automatically)","material":"AP register - invoices entered Oct 1-31, 2026, pending payment\n\nV-17 Northwind Supplies     INV 4410    $1,240.00   dated Oct 3    entered Oct 4\nV-17 Northwind Supplies     INV-4410    $1,240.00   dated Oct 3    entered Oct 9\nV-22 Corbel Print           8821        $560.00     dated Oct 5    entered Oct 6\nV-22 Corbel Print           8822        $560.00     dated Oct 5    entered Oct 6\nV-31 Halden IT Services     3307        $2,150.00   dated Oct 7    entered Oct 8\nV-35 Halden Information Tech 3307       $2,150.00   dated Oct 7    entered Oct 14\nV-40 Marlow Cleaning        912         $410.00     dated Sep 30   entered Oct 9\nV-40 Marlow Cleaning        913         $410.00     dated Oct 31   entered Oct 31\n\nNotes: Corbel prints our two monthly newsletters and has billed one invoice per newsletter before. Marlow bills a flat $410 cleaning fee each month. Halden was acquired by a bigger firm in the spring and renamed, which is why a second vendor record may exist.","rules":[{"type":"plainText"},{"type":"maxWords","max":110},{"type":"maxBullets","max":4}],"promptHints":[{"label":"Defines the three labels","patterns":["likely duplicate","possible duplicate","looks routine"]},{"label":"Names what to compare","patterns":["invoice number","amount","vendor id","date"]},{"label":"Forbids payment instructions","patterns":["(don'?t|not|never).*(void|delete|pay)"]},{"label":"Sets the checklist shape","patterns":["- \\[ \\]","checklist","one per vendor"]},{"label":"Caps length","patterns":["\\d+\\s*words","under"]}],"mistakes":[{"title":"Exact-match only","why":"The AI only flags identical numbers and misses INV 4410 vs INV-4410.","fix":"Say: \"Ignore dashes and spaces in invoice numbers.\"","checks":["r0"]},{"title":"Missing the vendor record","why":"The AI treats Halden's two IDs as two vendors and clears it.","fix":"Add: \"Compare vendor IDs too; a second record can hide a duplicate.\"","checks":["r1"]},{"title":"Flagging routine bills","why":"The AI marks Corbel and Marlow as duplicates because the amounts match, or tells AP to void.","fix":"Add: \"Pick one label per vendor. Don't tell anyone to void, delete or pay.\"","checks":["r2"]},{"title":"Bold labels and chatter","why":"The AI writes a long list with markdown and a summary.","fix":"Say: \"Exactly four plain-text lines, nothing else.\"","checks":["plainText","maxBullets"]},{"title":"Trusting the AI to count words","why":"AI is bad at counting and runs past word limits.","fix":"Ask for fewer words than the real cap and keep each line short.","checks":["maxWords"]}],"hint":"Duplicates hide in dashes and second vendor records. Ask for one label per vendor and ban payment instructions.","rubricLabels":["There are exactly four lines each starting \"- [ ]\", and the line starting \"- [ ] Northwind\" is labeled Likely duplicate (INV 4410 and INV-4410, both $1,240.00 dated Oct 3)","The line starting \"- [ ] Halden\" is labeled Possible duplicate or Likely duplicate and points out invoice number 3307 and amount under two vendor IDs (V-31 and V-35), suggesting a duplicate vendor record be checked","The lines starting \"- [ ] Corbel\" and \"- [ ] Marlow\" are both labeled Looks routine, and no line tells anyone to void, delete or pay"]}