diff --git a/crud.py b/crud.py
index 8029f26..80af91f 100644
--- a/crud.py
+++ b/crud.py
@@ -148,7 +148,9 @@ async def count_period_failures(contract_id: str, period_index: int) -> int:
     counter on the contract so the number survives a restart and stays
     auditable — the rows that produced it are right there.
     """
-    row = await db.fetchone(
+    # No model: fetchone's TModel is unbound for a bare aggregate, so the
+    # row comes back as a plain mapping and needs its own annotation.
+    row: dict | None = await db.fetchone(
         "SELECT COUNT(*) AS n FROM payroll.payouts "
         "WHERE contract_id = :cid AND period_index = :idx AND status = :status",
         {