diff --git a/agent/verify/runner.py b/agent/verify/runner.py
index c327dde636..4016c1638b 100644
--- a/agent/verify/runner.py
+++ b/agent/verify/runner.py
@@ -182,15 +182,13 @@ def _run_start_phase(
     return ReadinessResult(url, ready, status, time.monotonic() - started, error, _tail(output))
 
 
-def _running_compose_containers(root: Path) -> list[str] | None:
-    """Names of currently-running containers for the compose project at *root*,
-    via ``docker compose ps`` (read-only; never mutates anything).
+def _compose_live_state_reason(root: Path) -> str | None:
+    """Why ``docker compose build``/``up`` must not run at *root*, or ``None`` to proceed.
 
-    ``None`` only when docker itself is absent -- the build phase would fail the
-    same way, so there is nothing to protect. A hung daemon or a non-zero probe
-    is reported as a refusal: containers may be live and unobservable, which is
-    exactly the #103567 loss window, and ``docker compose build`` would not have
-    fared better against the same daemon.
+    Read-only ``docker compose ps`` probe. Only a missing docker binary proceeds -- the
+    build phase would fail the same way, so there is nothing to protect. A hung daemon
+    or a non-zero probe refuses: containers may be live and unobservable, which is
+    exactly the #103567 loss window.
     """
     try:
         result = subprocess.run(
@@ -200,11 +198,12 @@ def _running_compose_containers(root: Path) -> list[str] | None:
     except FileNotFoundError:
         return None
     except subprocess.TimeoutExpired:
-        return ["<docker compose ps timed out after 15s; live containers cannot be ruled out>"]
+        return "docker compose ps timed out after 15s; live containers cannot be ruled out"
     if result.returncode != 0:
         detail = (result.stderr or result.stdout or "").strip().splitlines()
-        return [f"<docker compose ps failed (exit {result.returncode}): {detail[-1] if detail else 'no output'}>"]
-    return [line for line in result.stdout.splitlines() if line.strip()]
+        return f"docker compose ps failed (exit {result.returncode}): {detail[-1] if detail else 'no output'}"
+    names = [line for line in result.stdout.splitlines() if line.strip()]
+    return f"this compose project already has running container(s): {', '.join(names)}" if names else None
 
 
 def run_verify(
@@ -229,16 +228,15 @@ def run_verify(
 
     mutating = ("build" in selected) or ("start" in selected and not skip_start)
     if recipe.kind == "compose" and mutating:
-        running = _running_compose_containers(root)
-        if running:
+        reason = _compose_live_state_reason(root)
+        if reason:
             result.phases.append(PhaseResult(
                 phase="build", command=recipe.build[0] if recipe.build else "docker compose build",
                 exit_code=1, duration=0.0, output_tail=(
-                    "Refusing to run: this compose project already has running "
-                    f"container(s) ({', '.join(running)}). `docker compose build` + "
-                    "`up` would replace them on an image-hash change, destroying any "
-                    "container-local state they carry. If you intend to rebuild this "
-                    "live deployment, run `docker compose build`/`up` yourself."
+                    f"Refusing to run: {reason}. `docker compose build` + `up` would replace "
+                    "live containers on an image-hash change, destroying any container-local "
+                    "state they carry. If you intend to rebuild this live deployment, run "
+                    "`docker compose build`/`up` yourself."
                 ),
             ))
             return result
diff --git a/tests/verify/test_environment_and_runner.py b/tests/verify/test_environment_and_runner.py
index 2108a2fe36..89905d14a8 100644
--- a/tests/verify/test_environment_and_runner.py
+++ b/tests/verify/test_environment_and_runner.py
@@ -116,11 +116,7 @@ class TestRunner:
 
 
 class TestComposeGuard:
-    """Regression for issue #103567: a compose recipe must refuse to run
-    against a project directory that's already a live compose deployment
-    with running containers -- ``docker compose build`` + ``up`` replaces
-    them on an image-hash change, destroying container-local state (a real
-    incident: a kanban worker's state DB was lost this way)."""
+    """#103567: a compose recipe must not build/up over a live deployment."""
 
     def _compose_recipe(self):
         return Recipe(
@@ -153,10 +149,7 @@ class TestComposeGuard:
         result = run_verify(tmp_path, self._compose_recipe(), skip_start=False)
 
         assert not result.ok
-        assert "Refusing to run" in result.phases[0].output_tail
-        if isinstance(probe, MagicMock) and probe.returncode == 0:
-            assert "myproject-db-1" in result.phases[0].output_tail
-            assert "myproject-web-1" in result.phases[0].output_tail
+        assert result.phases[0].exit_code == 1
         # Only the read-only probe ran -- never build or up.
         assert len(calls) == 1
         assert calls[0][:3] == ["docker", "compose", "ps"]
@@ -182,7 +175,7 @@ class TestComposeGuard:
 
     def test_guard_skipped_when_no_mutating_phase_selected(self, tmp_path, monkeypatch):
         probe = MagicMock()
-        monkeypatch.setattr("agent.verify.runner._running_compose_containers", probe)
+        monkeypatch.setattr("agent.verify.runner._compose_live_state_reason", probe)
 
         with patch("agent.verify.runner._run_phase_command") as mock_phase:
             mock_phase.return_value = MagicMock(ok=True, phase="test")