diff --git a/agent/context_compressor.py b/agent/context_compressor.py
index 45c26b11b0..6c177b9099 100644
--- a/agent/context_compressor.py
+++ b/agent/context_compressor.py
@@ -344,6 +344,7 @@ class ContextCompressor(ContextEngine):
         self._last_aux_model_failure_model = None
         self._last_compression_savings_pct = 100.0
         self._ineffective_compression_count = 0
+        self._summary_failure_cooldown_until = 0.0  # transient errors must not block a fresh session
 
     def update_model(
         self,