diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
index d4fb308..65cc384 100644
--- a/AGENTS.md
+++ b/AGENTS.md
@@ -145,6 +145,19 @@ See `.env.example` for full list. Key variables:
 4. Update endpoint table in `SPEC.md` and `README.md`
 5. Test with: `curl -H "Remote-User: <user>" http://127.0.0.1:8000/<path>`
 
+### Querying contact names from the DB
+**IMPORTANT:** The `full_name` column in `contacts` can be NULL — it is
+NOT guaranteed to be set. Always SELECT `prefix, given_name, middle_name,
+family_name, suffix` alongside `full_name` and apply the fallback:
+```python
+if not row.get("full_name"):
+    row["full_name"] = db._build_full_name(row)
+```
+This is what `_row_to_contact_out()` does for API responses. Any code
+that needs a contact's display name (e.g. proxying to external APIs)
+must follow the same pattern. See `get_contact_messages()` in
+`src/api/main.py` for a reference implementation.
+
 ### Adding a new contact field
 1. Add column to `contacts` table in `sql/schema.sql`
 2. Update `src/vcard_parser.py` to extract the field
diff --git a/src/api/main.py b/src/api/main.py
index a2ed712..16ade9d 100644
--- a/src/api/main.py
+++ b/src/api/main.py
@@ -229,14 +229,21 @@ def get_contact_messages(
         id_clause = "AND id = %s" if where_clause else "WHERE id = %s"
         with conn.cursor() as cur:
             cur.execute(
-                f"SELECT full_name FROM contacts {where_clause} {id_clause}",
+                f"""SELECT full_name, prefix, given_name, middle_name, family_name, suffix
+                    FROM contacts {where_clause} {id_clause}""",
                 params + [contact_id],
             )
             row = cur.fetchone()
 
-    if not row or not row.get("full_name"):
+    if not row:
         return JSONResponse(status_code=404, content={"detail": "Kontakt nicht gefunden"})
 
+    if not row.get("full_name"):
+        row["full_name"] = db._build_full_name(row)
+
+    if not row.get("full_name"):
+        return JSONResponse(status_code=404, content={"detail": "Kontakt hat keinen Namen"})
+
     try:
         resp = requests.get(
             f"{Config.CHATAPI_URL.rstrip('/')}/conversation",