diff --git a/lib/local-ledger.js b/lib/local-ledger.js
index 9c2d211..5b21569 100644
--- a/lib/local-ledger.js
+++ b/lib/local-ledger.js
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 // Copyright (c) 2026 EvoMap
 
 import { execFile } from 'node:child_process';
+import { stat } from 'node:fs/promises';
 import { createRequire } from 'node:module';
 import { join } from 'node:path';
 import { pathToFileURL } from 'node:url';
@@ -76,6 +77,13 @@ export async function recordReuseLocally({ assetId, outcome, sessionId }, { engi
   const ingestor = await loadIngestor(enginePrefix);
   if (!ingestor) return false;
 
+  // Check the target before ingest, where a failure cannot follow an append.
+  try {
+    if (!(await stat(ingestor.path)).isFile()) return false;
+  } catch (error) {
+    if (error?.code !== 'ENOENT') return false;
+  }
+
   const cycleId = cycleIdOf(sessionId);
   const success = outcome === 'success';
   try {
@@ -87,8 +95,10 @@ export async function recordReuseLocally({ assetId, outcome, sessionId }, { engi
       },
       payload: success ? { assetId, cycleId } : { assetId, cycleId, outcome },
     });
-    return true;
-  } catch {
-    return false;
+  } catch (error) {
+    // Core acquires the lock before appending. Other errors can follow a write.
+    if (error?.code === 'LOCK_TIMEOUT') return false;
+    throw error;
   }
+  return true;
 }
diff --git a/lib/report-outbox.js b/lib/report-outbox.js
index fb47a0f..f09680f 100644
--- a/lib/report-outbox.js
+++ b/lib/report-outbox.js
@@ -34,6 +34,10 @@ function settlementOf({ verdict, reason, status }, now) {
 export function withAttempt(outbox, key, attempt, now) {
   const entry = outbox[key];
   if (!entry) return outbox;
-  const local = attempt.isLocal ? { localAt: now } : {};
+  const local = {
+    ...(attempt.isLocal === true && { localAt: now }),
+    ...(attempt.isLocal === false && { localFailures: (entry.localFailures ?? 0) + 1 }),
+    ...(attempt.localUncertain && { localUncertainAt: now }),
+  };
   return { ...outbox, [key]: { ...entry, attempts: entry.attempts + 1, ...local, ...settlementOf(attempt, now) } };
 }
diff --git a/lib/reuse.js b/lib/reuse.js
index 57927ea..6bf4645 100644
--- a/lib/reuse.js
+++ b/lib/reuse.js
@@ -89,6 +89,7 @@ export function retentionReportOf(reuse, retentionClass) {
   });
 }
 
+const MAX_LOCAL_FAILURES = 3;
 const REJECTED_BY_HUB = /^hub (?:400|422)\b/;
 
 function isRejection(data) {
@@ -113,26 +114,35 @@ async function postToHub(proxyFetch, report) {
   }
 }
 
-function isLocalRecordDue({ report, localAt }, delivery) {
-  return !localAt && delivery.verdict !== REJECTED && report.evidence.tier !== 'none';
+function isLocalRecordDue({ report, localAt, localUncertainAt, localFailures = 0, rejectedAt }) {
+  return !localAt && !localUncertainAt && !rejectedAt && localFailures < MAX_LOCAL_FAILURES && report.evidence.tier !== 'none';
 }
 
 async function recordedLocally(recordLocally, { report, sessionId }) {
-  return recordLocally({ assetId: report.asset_id, outcome: report.outcome, sessionId }).catch(() => false);
+  try {
+    return { isLocal: await recordLocally({ assetId: report.asset_id, outcome: report.outcome, sessionId }) };
+  } catch {
+    return { localUncertain: true };
+  }
 }
 
 async function attemptOf(ledgers, entry) {
   const delivery = await postToHub(ledgers.proxyFetch, entry.report);
-  const isLocal = isLocalRecordDue(entry, delivery) && (await recordedLocally(ledgers.recordLocally, entry));
-  if (delivery.verdict === REJECTED) await ledgers.onRejected({ taskId: entry.report.task_id, assetId: entry.report.asset_id, ...delivery });
-  return { ...delivery, isLocal };
+  if (delivery.verdict === REJECTED) {
+    await ledgers.onRejected({ taskId: entry.report.task_id, assetId: entry.report.asset_id, ...delivery });
+  } else if (isLocalRecordDue(entry)) {
+    return { ...delivery, ...await recordedLocally(ledgers.recordLocally, entry) };
+  }
+  return delivery;
 }
 
 export async function deliverPending(ledgers, outbox, now, afterAttempt = () => {}) {
   let delivered = outbox;
   for (const [key, entry] of Object.entries(outbox)) {
-    if (isSettled(entry)) continue;
-    delivered = withAttempt(delivered, key, await attemptOf(ledgers, entry), now);
+    const localOnly = entry.sentAt && isLocalRecordDue(entry);
+    if (isSettled(entry) && !localOnly) continue;
+    const attempt = localOnly ? await recordedLocally(ledgers.recordLocally, entry) : await attemptOf(ledgers, entry);
+    delivered = withAttempt(delivered, key, attempt, now);
     afterAttempt();
   }
   return delivered;
diff --git a/test/reuse.test.js b/test/reuse.test.js
index fd88137..0da7b56 100644
--- a/test/reuse.test.js
+++ b/test/reuse.test.js
@@ -1,6 +1,12 @@
 import assert from 'node:assert/strict';
+import { mkdirSync, mkdtempSync, rmdirSync, rmSync } from 'node:fs';
+import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
+import { join } from 'node:path';
 import { test } from 'node:test';
 
+import { events } from '@evomap/evolver-core';
+
+import { recordReuseLocally } from '../lib/local-ledger.js';
 import { withQueued } from '../lib/report-outbox.js';
 import {
   correctionReportOf,
@@ -139,6 +145,119 @@ test('evidence-bearing reports are recorded locally once; tier none never is', a
   assert.equal(sinks.posts.length, 4);
 });
 
+test('a sent report retries a pre-write local failure without posting to the Hub again', async () => {
+  const down = ledgers({ local: false });
+  const queued = withQueued({}, [{ report: immediate({ checks: [{ command: 'npm test', failed: false }] }), sessionId: 'claude-code:s1' }], NOW);
+  const sent = await deliverPending(down, queued, NOW);
+  assert.equal(down.posts.length, 1);
+  assert.equal(Object.values(sent)[0].sentAt, NOW);
+  assert.equal(Object.values(sent)[0].localAt, undefined);
+  const up = ledgers();
+  const recorded = await deliverPending(up, sent, NOW + 1);
+  assert.equal(up.posts.length, 0);
+  assert.deepEqual(up.locals, [{ assetId: 'sha256:a', outcome: 'success', sessionId: 'claude-code:s1' }]);
+  assert.equal(Object.values(recorded)[0].sentAt, NOW, 'the original Hub delivery time stays intact');
+  assert.equal(Object.values(recorded)[0].localAt, NOW + 1);
+  await deliverPending(up, recorded, NOW + 2);
+  assert.equal(up.locals.length, 1);
+  assert.equal(up.posts.length, 0);
+});
+
+function useTemporaryLedger(t) {
+  const home = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'evolver-ledger-retry-'));
+  const previous = process.env.EVOLVER_HOME;
+  process.env.EVOLVER_HOME = home;
+  t.after(() => {
+    if (previous === undefined) delete process.env.EVOLVER_HOME;
+    else process.env.EVOLVER_HOME = previous;
+    rmSync(home, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  });
+}
+
+test('a ledger lock timeout retries the local write after Hub delivery', async (t) => {
+  useTemporaryLedger(t);
+  let attempts = 0;
+  t.mock.method(events.Ingestor.prototype, 'ingest', async () => {
+    attempts += 1;
+    if (attempts === 1) {
+      throw Object.assign(new Error('ledger lock timeout'), { code: 'LOCK_TIMEOUT' });
+    }
+  });
+  const sinks = { ...ledgers(), recordLocally: recordReuseLocally };
+  const report = immediate({ checks: [{ command: 'npm test', failed: false }] });
+  const queued = withQueued({}, [{ report, sessionId: 'claude-code:s1' }], NOW);
+  const sent = await deliverPending(sinks, queued, NOW);
+  const [pending] = Object.values(sent);
+  assert.equal(pending.localFailures, 1);
+  assert.equal(pending.localUncertainAt, undefined);
+  assert.equal(pending.sentAt, NOW);
+
+  const recorded = await deliverPending(sinks, sent, NOW + 1);
+  assert.equal(Object.values(recorded)[0].localAt, NOW + 1);
+  assert.equal(attempts, 2);
+  assert.equal(sinks.posts.length, 1);
+});
+
+test('a ledger path blocked by a directory retries locally after the path is repaired', async (t) => {
+  useTemporaryLedger(t);
+  const path = events.rootEventsPath();
+  mkdirSync(path, { recursive: true });
+
+  const sinks = { ...ledgers(), recordLocally: recordReuseLocally };
+  const report = immediate({ checks: [{ command: 'npm test', failed: false }] });
+  const queued = withQueued({}, [{ report, sessionId: 'claude-code:s1' }], NOW);
+  const sent = await deliverPending(sinks, queued, NOW);
+  const [pending] = Object.values(sent);
+  assert.equal(pending.sentAt, NOW);
+  assert.equal(pending.localFailures, 1);
+  assert.equal(pending.localUncertainAt, undefined);
+
+  rmdirSync(path);
+  const recorded = await deliverPending(sinks, sent, NOW + 1);
+  assert.equal(Object.values(recorded)[0].localAt, NOW + 1);
+  await deliverPending(sinks, recorded, NOW + 2);
+  assert.equal(sinks.posts.length, 1);
+  const entries = new events.Ingestor({ path }).readAllStrict();
+  assert.deepEqual(entries.map(({ type, payload }) => ({ type, payload })), [
+    { type: 'value.reuse_hit', payload: { assetId: ASSET.assetId, cycleId: 'claude-code:s1' } },
+  ]);
+});
+
+test('an error after appending never retries either ledger', async (t) => {
+  useTemporaryLedger(t);
+  const ingest = events.Ingestor.prototype.ingest;
+  const attempted = t.mock.method(events.Ingestor.prototype, 'ingest', async function (event) {
+    await ingest.call(this, event);
+    throw Object.assign(new Error('ledger failed after appending'), { code: 'EISDIR' });
+  });
+  const sinks = { ...ledgers(), recordLocally: recordReuseLocally };
+  const report = immediate({ checks: [{ command: 'npm test', failed: false }] });
+  let outbox = withQueued({}, [{ report, sessionId: 'claude-code:s1' }], NOW);
+  for (let i = 0; i < 5; i += 1) outbox = await deliverPending(sinks, outbox, NOW + i);
+
+  assert.equal(sinks.posts.length, 1);
+  assert.equal(attempted.mock.callCount(), 1);
+  assert.equal(new events.Ingestor({ path: events.rootEventsPath() }).readAllStrict().length, 1);
+  assert.equal(Object.values(outbox)[0].sentAt, NOW);
+  assert.equal(Object.values(outbox)[0].localUncertainAt, NOW);
+  assert.equal(Object.values(outbox)[0].localAt, undefined);
+});
+
+test('exhausting local attempts does not stop Hub delivery retries', async () => {
+  const down = ledgers({ hub: new Error('Hub offline'), local: false });
+  const report = immediate({ checks: [{ command: 'npm test', failed: false }] });
+  let outbox = withQueued({}, [{ report, sessionId: 'claude-code:s1' }], NOW);
+  for (let i = 0; i < 4; i += 1) outbox = await deliverPending(down, outbox, NOW + i);
+
+  assert.equal(down.posts.length, 4);
+  assert.equal(down.locals.length, 3);
+  const up = ledgers();
+  const sent = await deliverPending(up, outbox, NOW + 4);
+  assert.equal(up.posts.length, 1);
+  assert.equal(up.locals.length, 0);
+  assert.equal(Object.values(sent)[0].sentAt, NOW + 4);
+});
+
 test('a report the Hub already holds counts as delivered and is not retried', async () => {
   const sinks = ledgers({ hub: { ok: true, data: { recorded: false, reason: 'duplicate_report' } } });
   const outbox = await deliverPending(sinks, withQueued({}, [{ report: immediate(), sessionId: 'claude-code:s1' }], NOW), NOW);