Plan: These rails are on every plan. Protections shows five always-on statements with no switches. Admin-only: Never chase, and Accept → Never follow up on a stop request.
Three different things get called “stop.” Mixing them is how chasing keeps running after you thought it had halted — or stops when you thought a request was only a request.
Invoice state vs send hold vs staff request
| Event | What changes | Do Workflow sends continue? |
|---|---|---|
| Paid in full | Invoice state — chasing on that invoice stops | No |
| Open dispute | Invoice usually Disputed; send gate also refuses | No, until you close it |
| Active promise / payment arrangement | Invoice Promised (or arrangement rules) | No while promised |
| Manual pause / part paid | Invoice Paused or Part paid · paused | No until Resume chasing |
| Never chase | Customer flag | No, to that customer |
| Settled / written off | Invoice closed | No |
| Inbound reply (email, portal, or non-STOP SMS) | Send hold only until Activity → Replies is triaged. Invoice state is unchanged | Further Workflow sends are held. The invoice is not paused |
| Portal “Ask them to stop chasing” | Staff request on Activity → Stop Requests. Destinations are not muted until Accept. The same portal message is also an inbound reply | Next emails wait on Replies triage (send hold). That is not a mute and not an invoice pause. Accept/Decline still decide suppress / never follow up |
| Carrier SMS STOP (STOP / STOPALL / UNSUBSCRIBE / CANCEL / END / QUIT, or carrier 21610) | Automatic suppression on that number | No SMS to that destination. Not a Stop Requests row. Does not set Never chase |
| Email hard-bounce / spam complaint | Send gate refuses once the address is on the suppression register | A bounce alone does not yet auto-suppress — that wiring is not live |
How to handle each human queue
- Open Activity.
- Replies — triage the inbound message. That clears the send hold. Use Pause chasing only if you also want the invoice paused.
- Disputes — Review → Customer Was Right (stay off), Customer Was Wrong (resume), or Settled (stay off) → Close dispute.
- Stop Requests — Accept stop request (suppress, or Admin never-follow-up) or Decline — keep chasing. Until then the badge stays Still chasing.
- Promises — Acknowledge or Acknowledge & resume when a promise is due for evaluation.
Always-on copy also lives on Workflows → Protections. That panel’s “anyone replies” line is broader than the engine: the executable behaviour is a send hold until triage, not invoices.state = paused.
Verify what is actually off
- Open the invoice — badges include Chasing, Not chasing, Paused, Promised, Disputed, Part paid · paused, Waiting to Start.
- If a reply is untriaged, Activity → Replies still has a row even when the invoice says Chasing.
- If a portal stop request is open, Activity → Stop Requests still says Still chasing.
- Check Sent Log for held reasons. Check Delivery Issues for bounce/fail.
Expected result
Paid, disputed, promised, paused, settled, written-off, and Never chase invoices do not receive further chase steps. Untriaged replies hold the next send. Open stop requests do not. SMS STOP suppresses that number immediately.
What this does not do
- It does not always pull back a message already at the send second — work Approvals early for Firm/Final.
- It does not delete Sent Log history.
- It does not provide an email List-Unsubscribe path. Portal stop is not a marketing unsub.
- It does not make PayBlah a collections firm. These rails only control your automation.