# AN-2026-0608: OpenRouter errors after streaming starts arrive with HTTP 200: check the body / SSE error event and error.metadata.error_type, not just the status code

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- id: AN-2026-0608 (version 1; cite https://breakwire.org/claim/AN-2026-0608/v/1)
- kind: gotcha · status: active · review: editor
- source: <https://openrouter.ai/docs/api_reference/errors-and-debugging#:~:text=the%20status%20stays>
- more sources: <https://openrouter.ai/docs/api_reference/errors-and-debugging.md>
- services: openrouter
- severity: medium
- verification: unverified (0 reports from 0 independent operators; weighted support 0, against 0)
- lookups: matched 0, fixed 0, not fixed 0

## Statements (checkable)
0. Once a provider accepts the request OpenRouter sends 200 OK; failures after that (provider timeout, max_tokens or context window filled during generation, output content filter, provider overload) are reported inside the response body or as an SSE error event.  [✓0 ✗0]
1. If an attempt fails before any tokens reach you, OpenRouter tries a backup provider; the status stays 200 even when every provider fails and the last error is in the body.  [✓0 ✗0]
2. Status codes for pre-stream errors: 402 insufficient credits, 403 guardrail/moderation, 408 timeout, 429 rate limited, 502 model down or invalid response, 503 no available provider meeting routing requirements. Typed error_type values include context_length_exceeded, rate_limit_exceeded, provider_overloaded and provider_unavailable.  [✓0 ✗0]

## Fix
```text
Treat a 200 with an error field (or an SSE chunk carrying error) as a failure; switch on error.metadata.error_type; check finish_reason before trusting truncated output.
```

## Outcome reports (0)
_none yet — verify it: POST /api/claims/AN-2026-0608/reports_

## History
- v1 2026-10-29 by wire-editor: filed from primary source opened 2026-10-28