ai-agent-intervention-credit-and-abort-refund

name

ai-agent-intervention-credit-and-abort-refund

description

Use when drafting the intervention-credit logic and the abort-and-refund clauses of an agent commercial structure. Provides the intervention-credit formula (per-resolution price reduced when intervention rate exceeds the agreed ceiling), the credit cap, the customer-facing monthly statement format, and the abort-and-refund triggers (irreversible-action incident at agency fault, intervention overshoot, regulator action, model-provider sustained outage). Pairs with `ai-agent-sla-and-credit-schedule` and `ai-agent-success-fee-and-outcome-pricing`.

AI-Agent Intervention Credit and Abort-Refund

Acknowledgement: Shared by Peter Bamuhigire, techguypeter.com, [phone].

Use When

• The pricing pattern depends on the agent operating without human intervention beyond an agreed ceiling.
• The buyer's procurement team has asked: "what happens if your agent fails?"
• The proposal must show, contractually, that the buyer does not pay full price for tasks where the human did the work.
• The buyer wants an honest exit if the agent does not reach autonomy in a reasonable time.
• The agency wants to demonstrate skin-in-the-game without giving away margin.

Do Not Use When

• The pricing pattern is per-step or per-agent with included volume and no intervention sensitivity.
• The engagement is a fixed-fee build with no operational agent.

Required Inputs

• The intervention rate ceiling (from the autonomy ramp curve).
• The pricing pattern and the unit price.
• The supervisor cost per intervention.
• The credit cap the agency can absorb in a single month without breaching margin floor.
• The buyer's reporting cadence and the monthly statement format.
• The list of refund triggers the agency is willing to commit to.
• The pro-rata refund formula.

Workflow

1. Set the intervention rate ceiling per the autonomy ramp curve. The ceiling should be a number the agent is expected to be inside of, with margin — not a stretch number.
2. Write the intervention-credit formula — when monthly intervention rate exceeds the ceiling, the buyer receives a credit on the units billed for that month.
3. Set the credit cap — typically 25 % of units billed per month, or the SLA-class cap for unified credits.
4. Define the customer-facing visibility — the monthly statement shows tasks attempted, tasks completed without intervention, intervention rate, ceiling, credit applied, evidence-link to audit log.
5. Write the abort-and-refund clause — the buyer's exit when the agent's autonomy ramp fails or when an irreversible-action incident occurs. Pro-rata refund of unused fees; no implementation-fee refund except where milestone-tied.
6. Write the refund triggers explicitly — list each, with definition, evidence, and the calculation.
7. Stress-test the intervention-credit exposure at three intervention rates (P50 / P90 / P99) against the cost stack — confirm margin floor holds.
8. Output the Intervention Credit Clause and the Abort-and-Refund Clause for the financial proposal and the MSA.

The Intervention-Credit Formula

The default formula:

If the Intervention Rate in any calendar month exceeds the agreed Ceiling, the Buyer shall receive a credit equal to C % of the Unit Fees billed for that month for every P percentage points above the Ceiling, up to a maximum credit of M % of the monthly Unit Fees.

Typical calibration:

• Ceiling — 10 % (Silver), 8 % (Gold), 5 % (Platinum), softer in the first three months of the ramp.
• C — 1 % credit per 1 percentage-point breach (stepped variant: 2 % above 5 ppts; 5 % above 10 ppts).
• M — 25 % cap (Silver), 50 % cap (Gold), 100 % cap (Platinum).

The credit is the agency's commitment that the buyer carries no more supervision cost than agreed. It is not a discount; it is the price of the supervision overhead the buyer paid that month.

Worked Example

• Pricing: $0.85 per resolution. Ceiling 10 %. C = 1 %. M = 25 %.
• Month observed intervention rate = 18 %. Breach = 8 ppts. Credit = 8 % of monthly Unit Fees.
• Monthly Unit Fees = $68,000. Credit = $5,440. The buyer's net invoice is $62,560 plus base.

Customer-Facing Monthly Statement

Tenant: ACME
Period: April 2026
Tasks attempted: 80,000
Tasks completed without intervention: 65,600 (82.0 %)
Intervention rate observed: 18.0 %
Ceiling: 10.0 %
Breach: 8.0 ppts
Unit Fees billed: $68,000
Intervention Credit applied: $5,440 (8.0 % of Unit Fees)
Net Unit Fees: $62,560
Base Fee: $25,000
Total invoice: $87,560
Audit-log evidence-link: <agent-audit/2026-04>

The customer-facing visibility is the difference between "we honour our SLAs" and "we never seem to credit anyone".

The Abort-and-Refund Clause

The buyer may exit the engagement with pro-rata refund of unused prepaid fees on any of the following triggers:

Trigger	Definition	Refund
Irreversible-Action Incident at Agency fault	An agent action with material adverse effect on the Buyer or a third party where the cause is determined by the named investigation process to be at the Agency's fault.	Pro-rata refund of unused subscription; implementation fees refunded only against unmet milestones.
Intervention overshoot, sustained	Monthly Intervention Rate above the Ceiling for sixty (60) consecutive days, after written notice and a thirty (30) day remediation window.	Pro-rata refund of unused subscription; intervention credits already issued retained by the Buyer; the engagement winds down.
Regulator Action	A regulator with jurisdiction over the Buyer or the Agent's actions issues an order to pause, restrict, or terminate the Agent.	Pro-rata refund; joint review; the Agency may credit the Buyer's next engagement against this refund.
Model-provider sustained outage	A named upstream Sub-Processor is unavailable for the relevant service for more than the agreed window (e.g. seven (7) consecutive days) and the Agency has not invoked the agreed fall-back.	Pro-rata refund of the affected window.
Audit-log breach	Audit-log completeness falls below the SLA floor for two consecutive months without remediation.	Pro-rata refund of the affected window plus a credit equal to ten per cent (10 %) of monthly fees.

Refunds are pro-rata against unused subscription. Implementation fees are not refundable past defined milestones. The buyer's right to abort is in addition to any service credits already issued.

Pro-Rata Refund Formula

Refund = Prepaid Subscription Fees × (Unused Days in Period / Total Days in Period)

For multi-tenant engagements, refunds are computed per affected tenant. For multi-agent engagements, refunds are computed per affected agent persona unless the abort is engagement-wide.

Quality Standards

• Intervention rate ceiling is a number, not a phrase.
• The formula has a stated C, P, and M.
• The credit cap is named.
• The customer-facing monthly statement shape is shown.
• The abort triggers are named, defined, and have evidence.
• The pro-rata formula is explicit.
• Implementation-fee refundability is named.
• The audit log is the evidence source for every trigger.
• The agency has stress-tested the credit exposure against margin floor.

Anti-Patterns

• "We will work with the Buyer in good faith on intervention" — buyer reads no credit.
• Credit formula with no cap — margin floor blown.
• Credit applied invisibly on the invoice — buyer cannot see the SLA being honoured.
• Abort triggers vague ("material failure") — disputes endless.
• Refund clause without the pro-rata formula — disputes endless.
• Implementation-fee refundability silent — buyer assumes everything refunds.
• Audit log absent as evidence — disputes default to the louder party.
• Intervention rate ceiling set at the autonomy stretch target — agency credit-bleeds while the ramp is still climbing.

Outputs

• Intervention Credit Clause (drop-in).
• Abort-and-Refund Clause (drop-in).
• Refund Triggers Schedule.
• Pro-Rata Refund Formula.
• Customer-Facing Monthly Statement Template.
• Stress-test memo against margin floor.

References

• ../references/ai-agent-credit-and-refund-clauses.md — drop-in language.
• ../references/ai-agent-abandonment-and-refund-policy-template.md — customer-facing policy.
• ../references/ai-agent-pricing-models-reference.md — pattern-by-pattern intervention credit examples.
• ../references/ai-agent-sla-exhibit-template.md — SLA exhibit alignment.
• ../ai-agent-sla-and-credit-schedule/SKILL.md — SLA class and credit cap consistency.
• ../ai-agent-pricing-and-packaging-proposal/SKILL.md — patterns.
• ../ai-agent-business-case-and-roi/SKILL.md — downside scenario sizing.