diff --git a/lettucedetect/detectors/llm.py b/lettucedetect/detectors/llm.py
index c3f0388..3827ada 100644
--- a/lettucedetect/detectors/llm.py
+++ b/lettucedetect/detectors/llm.py
@@ -43,7 +43,9 @@ def _looks_native(model: str) -> bool:
    `{"hallucination_list": ["substring1", "substring2", …]}`
 
    Each substring must be copied **verbatim** from the answer — an exact,
-   character-for-character match. If none are found, return `{"hallucination_list": []}`."""
+   character-for-character match. List substrings in answer order and include a
+   repeated substring at most once per distinct occurrence. If none are found,
+   return `{"hallucination_list": []}`."""
 
 _VERIFY_SYSTEM = (
     "You are a strict fact-checker confirming whether flagged spans are truly unsupported."
@@ -198,7 +200,10 @@ def _response_format_block(self) -> str:
             return _RESPONSE_FORMAT
 
         example: dict = {"text": "substring1"}
-        notes = ['- "text" must be an exact substring of the answer.']
+        notes = [
+            '- "text" must be an exact substring of the answer and items must be listed in answer order.',
+            "- For repeated substrings, return at most one item per distinct occurrence.",
+        ]
         if self.include_reasoning:
             example["reasoning"] = "compare the span against the source before judging it"
             notes.append(
diff --git a/tests/test_llm_detector_pytest.py b/tests/test_llm_detector_pytest.py
index 074f0f6..1003b86 100644
--- a/tests/test_llm_detector_pytest.py
+++ b/tests/test_llm_detector_pytest.py
@@ -181,6 +181,26 @@ def test_filtered_item_still_reserves_its_occurrence(self):
 
         assert [(span["start"], span["end"]) for span in spans] == [(20, 25)]
 
+    def test_low_confidence_item_still_reserves_its_occurrence(self):
+        """Confidence filtering also preserves later repeated-span offsets."""
+        answer = "Paris is mentioned; Paris is repeated."
+        items: list[str | dict] = [
+            {"text": "Paris", "confidence": 0.2},
+            {"text": "Paris", "confidence": 0.9},
+        ]
+
+        spans = LLMDetector._to_spans(items, answer, min_confidence=0.5)
+
+        assert spans == [{"start": 20, "end": 25, "text": "Paris", "confidence": 0.9}]
+
+    def test_single_ambiguous_item_keeps_first_match(self):
+        """A single repeated string still uses the documented first match."""
+        answer = "Paris is mentioned; Paris is repeated."
+
+        spans = LLMDetector._to_spans(["Paris"], answer)
+
+        assert spans == [{"start": 0, "end": 5, "text": "Paris"}]
+
     def test_overlapping_and_excess_items_do_not_reuse_offsets(self):
         """Items without a free non-overlapping occurrence are dropped."""
         spans = LLMDetector._to_spans(["abc", "bc", "abc"], "abc")
@@ -195,3 +215,24 @@ def test_token_output_flags_both_repeated_occurrences(self, cache_file):
         tokens = detector.predict_prompt("p", answer, output_format="tokens")
 
         assert [token["pred"] for token in tokens] == [1, 0, 0, 1, 0]
+
+
+class TestRepeatedSpanPromptInstructions:
+    """Prompt formats should match the repeated-span localization contract."""
+
+    def test_simple_response_format_requests_answer_order(self):
+        """The simple schema should ask the model to preserve answer order."""
+        detector = make_detector('{"hallucination_list": []}', cache_file="unused")
+
+        block = detector._response_format_block()
+
+        assert "List substrings in answer order" in block
+
+    def test_reasoning_response_format_requests_one_item_per_occurrence(self, cache_file):
+        """The object schema should describe repeated-substring occurrence handling."""
+        detector = make_detector('{"hallucination_list": []}', cache_file, include_reasoning=True)
+
+        block = detector._response_format_block()
+
+        assert "items must be listed in answer order" in block
+        assert "return at most one item per distinct occurrence" in block