How do you trace a builder inquiry that never reached the office?

A builder form delivery incident log traces a missing inquiry through browser validation, server acceptance, a durable record, notification and office acknowledgment. Record evidence at each boundary before choosing recovery. Use the worksheet below to separate confirmed delivery from assumptions, prevent duplicate follow-up and verify that an assigned person owns the inquiry.

Where can an inquiry stop after submission?

A success screen alone cannot establish that your office received an inquiry. Treat each handoff as a separate question. The builder lead intake form guide covers initial design and launch tests. This proposed incident worksheet starts when a submission appears to be missing.

Browser validation checks input against field rules. MDN's form validation guide also calls for validation on the server because browser checks can be bypassed. Neither check proves a downstream handoff.

Define durable record as a saved entry you can retrieve after the request finishes. A request log can show acceptance without proving that save. A notification can arrive without creating a response task. Use builder response coverage and reply checks for the human handoff after receipt.

Which evidence belongs in an incident record?

Open one incident record before changing settings. Copy this worksheet into your builder-controlled working file. Its identifiers and destinations are fictional. Replace the placeholders inside your private system. Keep buyer contact details out of public reports, screenshots and shared troubleshooting threads.

FORM DELIVERY INCIDENT WORKSHEET
Incident ID: SYN-FORM-20261028-01
Environment: isolated local test
Symptom: success shown; office notification missing
First observed: 2026-10-28T09:15:00-04:00
Timezone: America/New_York
Source page: http://127.0.0.1:8080/test-inquiry/
Form version: local-fixture-v1
Submission ID: SYN-INQ-001
Payload reference: local synthetic fixture only
Original source: local-test / test-inquiry
Expected receiver: local record store and notification sink
Investigation owner: TEST-OPS-01
Office acknowledgment owner: TEST-INTAKE-01

BOUNDARY | TIME + ZONE | EVIDENCE REFERENCE | RESULT
Browser validation | [time] | [observation] | [known/unknown]
Server acceptance | [time] | [request result] | [known/unknown]
Durable record | [time] | [read-back record] | [known/unknown]
Notification | [time] | [receiver evidence] | [known/unknown]
Office acknowledgment | [time] | [staff ID + next action] | [known/unknown]

Search window and systems inspected: [scope]
Queued attempts and pending retries: [IDs and state]
Received records and existing tasks: [IDs and state]
Automatic retry state: [paused/active/unknown]
Decision: [hold / repair / replay named step / manual recovery]
Decision owner and authorization time: [identifier + time]
Duplicate prevention: [matching rule + repeat-attempt control]
Recovery attempt: [attempt ID + original submission ID]
Source history preserved: [evidence]
Follow-up verification: [receiver read-back + office acknowledgment]
Next check owner and due time: [identifier + time]
Closure: [open / monitoring / closed + evidence]

Record timestamps with their timezone offsets. Preserve original timestamps when exporting evidence. If system clocks disagree, record that uncertainty before comparing event order. A blank receiving log means unknown unless you also establish its coverage and search window.

Store evidence references rather than copying full payloads into every row. Record which system you inspected, the search terms and the result. Separate the symptom from the suspected cause. “No notification in the local sink” is an observation. “The mail service failed” needs additional evidence.

How can you trace the break with synthetic records?

Use an isolated local form, local record store and local notification sink. Disable outbound delivery and integrations before testing. If isolation is uncertain, stop the test. Do not submit the real AgAI Labs form or use a buyer's details as test data.

1. Define the expected route. Write each receiving destination in the worksheet. Include any queue between the stored record and notification.
2. Create a fictional payload. Use submission ID SYN-INQ-001, project note “TEST ONLY: fictional lot question” and contact marker TEST-CONTACT-001. Map the contact marker only to the local sink.
3. Observe validation. Try an intentionally incomplete local fixture. Record the field error. Then use the complete fictional fixture.
4. Trace acceptance and storage. Match the request identifier to the stored submission. Read the saved record through the local receiver.
5. Trace notification. Compare the queued attempt with the local sink entry. Record pending retries before making another attempt.
6. Obtain office acknowledgment. Have the designated tester record their identifier, review time and next action. Keep this separate from automated receipt.

What does a fictional investigation show?

This worked example describes invented observations, not a test performed on a live builder system. Every timestamp uses America/New_York, offset -04:00. The incident begins at 09:15 when the local confirmation appears but the notification sink remains empty.

The example does not create a second inquiry. The new attempt points to the original submission and records the repair. If the stored inquiry were missing instead, the investigation would need a different recovery decision.

When is replay safe to consider?

Replay means repeating a specified failed step. Before authorizing it, compare queued attempts with received records and existing response tasks. Match submission identifiers first. If identifiers are absent, treat similar payloads as possible matches requiring review.

Record the comparison window and destination. Check delayed work, automatic retries, duplicate contacts and earlier manual follow-up. If a retry can still run, coordinate its pause with the system owner. Recheck the receiver immediately before recovery. An earlier empty search can become outdated.

• Hold: receiver evidence is incomplete, retry state is unknown, or a possible duplicate remains unresolved.
• Replay the failed step: the original record exists, the missing handoff is confirmed, and repeat attempts cannot create duplicate work.
• Use manual recovery: an authorized person creates the missing task against the existing inquiry when controlled replay is unavailable.

Record a person's authorization, the exact step and the allowed destination. Preserve the original inquiry ID, page, source tags and submission time. Append the recovery attempt and its outcome. Do not relabel recovery time as the original inquiry time.

Where supported, use a repeat-attempt control that rejects another action for the same submission and step. Verify its behavior locally. Otherwise, keep recovery manual under one owner. The builder lead tracking guide explains why original source history must survive later touches.

What closes the incident?

Close the incident after the repaired handoff produces evidence and the assigned office person acknowledges the working record. Record the next action separately from the technical repair. A buyer response still needs its own owner.

Set a follow-up check using another fictional local submission. Verify the saved record, notification and office acknowledgment again. Record unresolved historical inquiries separately. A successful new test does not prove earlier missing inquiries were recovered. Keep the incident open when receiver evidence remains unknown.

What could a builder-owned form tell buyers?

These are proposed wording examples for a builder-owned form, not descriptions of AgAI Labs functionality. Use each only when the builder's implementation can establish that state.

• Saved record confirmed: “Your inquiry has been saved for office review.”
• Office acknowledgment confirmed: “Our office has reviewed your inquiry and assigned the next response.”
• Receipt uncertain: “We could not confirm receipt. Please use the contact option shown on this page.”

Use the uncertain-receipt message only with a working alternative contact option. Avoid asking buyers to submit again while duplicate status remains unknown. W3C's form notification tutorial recommends clear success feedback and errors that explain how to resolve the problem. It does not prescribe this incident worksheet.

Keep the completed log with your private operating records. Use the Lead attribution stage to connect delivery checks with source capture and response ownership.