diff --git a/backend/alembic/versions/9bac7bf02e38_add_reminders_disabled_to_users.py b/backend/alembic/versions/9bac7bf02e38_add_reminders_disabled_to_users.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d1b67fd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/alembic/versions/9bac7bf02e38_add_reminders_disabled_to_users.py
@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+"""add reminders_disabled to users
+
+Revision ID: 9bac7bf02e38
+Revises: c3aafcd58735
+Create Date: 2026-04-14 03:30:00.000000
+
+Adds a `reminders_disabled` BOOLEAN column to `users` so the opt-out preference
+is persisted in Postgres instead of Redis (which was volatile and fail-opened
+when unreachable).
+
+On upgrade, attempts a one-time Redis -> DB sync so existing opt-outs are
+preserved. Silently skips if Redis is unavailable.
+"""
+from typing import Sequence, Union
+
+from alembic import op
+import sqlalchemy as sa
+
+
+revision: str = '9bac7bf02e38'
+down_revision: Union[str, None] = 'c3aafcd58735'
+branch_labels: Union[str, Sequence[str], None] = None
+depends_on: Union[str, Sequence[str], None] = None
+
+
+def upgrade() -> None:
+    op.add_column(
+        'users',
+        sa.Column(
+            'reminders_disabled',
+            sa.Boolean(),
+            server_default=sa.text('false'),
+            nullable=False,
+        ),
+    )
+
+    # Best-effort: migrate existing opt-outs from Redis so users don't start
+    # receiving emails they had previously turned off.
+    try:
+        import os
+        import json
+        import redis
+
+        redis_url = os.environ.get('REDIS_URL')
+        if not redis_url:
+            return
+
+        r = redis.from_url(redis_url, decode_responses=True, socket_connect_timeout=3)
+        conn = op.get_bind()
+        for key in r.scan_iter('user_settings:*', count=100):
+            try:
+                raw = r.get(key)
+                if not raw:
+                    continue
+                data = json.loads(raw)
+                if not data.get('reminders_disabled'):
+                    continue
+                uid = int(key.split(':', 1)[1])
+                conn.execute(
+                    sa.text('UPDATE users SET reminders_disabled = TRUE WHERE id = :uid'),
+                    {'uid': uid},
+                )
+            except Exception:
+                continue
+    except Exception:
+        pass
+
+
+def downgrade() -> None:
+    op.drop_column('users', 'reminders_disabled')
diff --git a/backend/app/models/user.py b/backend/app/models/user.py
index 81de4ae..8ad0955 100644
--- a/backend/app/models/user.py
+++ b/backend/app/models/user.py
@@ -1,7 +1,8 @@
 from datetime import datetime
 
-from sqlalchemy import Column, Integer, String, DateTime
+from sqlalchemy import Column, Integer, String, DateTime, Boolean
 from sqlalchemy.orm import relationship
+from sqlalchemy.sql import false as sa_false
 
 from app.database import Base
 
@@ -15,6 +16,7 @@ class User(Base):
     name = Column(String, nullable=False)
     role = Column(String, default="user")  # admin, moderator, user
     is_unthrottled = Column(Integer, default=0)  # 1 = exempt from rate limits
+    reminders_disabled = Column(Boolean, default=False, nullable=False, server_default=sa_false())
     created_at = Column(DateTime, default=datetime.utcnow)
 
     documents = relationship("PDFDocument", back_populates="user")
diff --git a/backend/app/routers/auth.py b/backend/app/routers/auth.py
index 8292112..a368ceb 100644
--- a/backend/app/routers/auth.py
+++ b/backend/app/routers/auth.py
@@ -265,32 +265,50 @@ def reset_password(data: ResetPasswordRequest, db: Session = Depends(get_db)):
 
 
 @router.get("/me/settings")
-def get_user_settings(current_user: User = Depends(get_current_user)):
-    """Get user settings stored in Redis (Nextcloud config etc.)."""
+def get_user_settings(
+    current_user: User = Depends(get_current_user),
+    db: Session = Depends(get_db),
+):
+    """Get user settings. Most settings live in Redis (Nextcloud config etc.);
+    reminders_disabled is canonical in Postgres and overrides Redis."""
+    data = {}
     try:
         import redis as redis_lib, json
         from app.config import settings as cfg
         r = redis_lib.from_url(cfg.REDIS_URL, decode_responses=True)
-        data = r.get(f"user_settings:{current_user.id}")
-        return json.loads(data) if data else {}
+        raw = r.get(f"user_settings:{current_user.id}")
+        if raw:
+            data = json.loads(raw)
     except Exception as e:
         import logging; logging.getLogger(__name__).warning(f"Failed to load user settings: {e}")
-        return {}
+
+    # Canonical opt-out preference comes from the DB
+    data["reminders_disabled"] = bool(current_user.reminders_disabled)
+    return data
 
 
 @router.put("/me/settings")
 def save_user_settings(
     settings_data: dict,
     current_user: User = Depends(get_current_user),
+    db: Session = Depends(get_db),
 ):
-    """Save user settings to Redis."""
+    """Save user settings. reminders_disabled is persisted to Postgres;
+    other keys go to Redis."""
+    # Persist opt-out preference to DB (canonical source for the scheduler)
+    if "reminders_disabled" in settings_data:
+        current_user.reminders_disabled = bool(settings_data.get("reminders_disabled"))
+        db.add(current_user)
+        db.commit()
+
+    # Keep the full blob in Redis so other fields (Nextcloud config etc.) persist
     try:
         import redis as redis_lib, json
         from app.config import settings as cfg
         r = redis_lib.from_url(cfg.REDIS_URL, decode_responses=True)
         r.set(f"user_settings:{current_user.id}", json.dumps(settings_data))
     except Exception as e:
-        import logging; logging.getLogger(__name__).warning(f"Failed to save user settings: {e}")
+        import logging; logging.getLogger(__name__).warning(f"Failed to save user settings to Redis: {e}")
     return {"saved": True}
 
 
diff --git a/backend/app/utils/scheduler.py b/backend/app/utils/scheduler.py
index f358d20..688e941 100644
--- a/backend/app/utils/scheduler.py
+++ b/backend/app/utils/scheduler.py
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ from app.database import SessionLocal
 from app.models.reminder import ReminderSchedule
 from app.models.user import User
 from app.models.quiz import Quiz
+from app.models.attempt import QuizAttempt
 
 logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
@@ -36,16 +37,20 @@ def check_and_send_reminders():
                 reminder.is_active = False
                 continue
 
-            # Check if user has opted out of reminders
-            try:
-                import redis as redis_lib, json as _json
-                from app.config import settings as cfg
-                r = redis_lib.from_url(cfg.REDIS_URL, decode_responses=True, socket_connect_timeout=1)
-                user_settings = _json.loads(r.get(f"user_settings:{user.id}") or "{}")
-                if user_settings.get("reminders_disabled"):
-                    continue
-            except Exception:
-                pass
+            # Deactivate if the user has no completed attempts left for this quiz
+            # (e.g., they deleted their attempts — spaced repetition no longer applies).
+            has_completed_attempt = db.query(QuizAttempt.id).filter(
+                QuizAttempt.user_id == user.id,
+                QuizAttempt.quiz_id == quiz.id,
+                QuizAttempt.completed_at.isnot(None),
+            ).first() is not None
+            if not has_completed_attempt:
+                reminder.is_active = False
+                continue
+
+            # Respect the user's opt-out preference (canonical source: Postgres).
+            if user.reminders_disabled:
+                continue
 
             # Send email asynchronously
             try: