{"id":"acct-returned-ach-vendor-email","audience":"accounting","category":"finance-work","track":"finance","technique":"context","level":"beginner","title":"Tell a vendor an ACH bounced without asking for bank details","free":false,"task":"You're in Accounts Payable and a vendor payment was returned. Write a prompt for a plain-text email under 90 words to the vendor contact. It names the invoice, the amount and the return date, asks the vendor to call AP to confirm their bank details, and says nothing will be resent until that is done. Never ask for account numbers by email, never promise a resend date, and end with \"Dana, Accounts Payable\". No bullets or numbering.","materialLabel":"Return notice and vendor record (attached to your prompt automatically)","material":"BANK RETURN NOTICE - received Nov 5, 2026\nACH payment of $4,200.00 sent Nov 3 for invoice INV-771 to Wexler Equipment was returned by the receiving bank. Return reason: account closed.\n\nVENDOR RECORD - Wexler Equipment\nContact: Sam Okafor, accounts receivable\nPhone on file: 555-0171\nBank details were last changed on Aug 12, 2026 (change form on file).\nAP phone for callbacks: 555-0140\n\nAP POLICY: When a payment is returned, AP asks the vendor to call AP to confirm bank details. Bank details are never requested or accepted by email. Payment is resent only after the confirmation is logged. No resend date is given in advance.\n\nNote: a colleague wonders if the vendor's account was hacked. There is no evidence of that, and the email should not suggest it.","rules":[{"type":"plainText"},{"type":"maxWords","max":90},{"type":"maxBullets","max":0}],"promptHints":[{"label":"Names the reader","patterns":["sam","wexler"]},{"label":"Includes invoice details","patterns":["inv-771","4,200","nov 5"]},{"label":"Asks for a call","patterns":["call.*555-0140","confirm"]},{"label":"Bans bank details and dates","patterns":["(never|do not|don'?t).*(account numbers|resend date)"]},{"label":"Caps length","patterns":["\\d+\\s*words","plain"]}],"mistakes":[{"title":"Asking for bank details or dates","why":"The AI asks Sam to email the account number, or says payment will go out Friday.","fix":"Add: \"Never ask for account numbers by email, give no resend date, and don't suggest the account was compromised.\"","checks":["r2"]},{"title":"Missing the callback number","why":"The AI asks to 'contact us' with no number.","fix":"Say: \"Ask Sam to call AP at 555-0140.\"","checks":["r1"]},{"title":"Missing the facts or sign-off","why":"The AI leaves out the invoice, amount or the exact sign-off.","fix":"Add: 'Start with \"Hi Sam,\" and end with the line: Dana, Accounts Payable.'","checks":["r0"]},{"title":"Markdown extras","why":"The AI adds bold labels, headings and a closing note.","fix":"Say: \"Plain text, no bold. Output only the lines asked for.\"","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":"A returned payment email must ask for a call, not for bank details. Give the facts, the number to call and the bans.","rubricLabels":["The email names INV-771, the $4,200.00 amount and the return on Nov 5, and is addressed to Sam","The email asks Sam to call AP at 555-0140 to confirm bank details, and states that nothing will be resent until the confirmation is logged","The email does not ask for account numbers by email, does not give a resend date, does not suggest hacking, and ends with the line \"Dana, Accounts Payable\""]}