diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index f79137c..d7a2b60 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -7,7 +7,20 @@ for how releases are cut and published.
 
 ## [Unreleased]
 
-## [0.8.1] — 2026-07-05
+## [0.8.2] — 2026-07-05
+
+### Fixed
+- **`RELAY_URL` now defaults to the hosted relay** (`https://network.temetro.com`) instead of
+  `http://localhost:8080`. The old default silently failed for anyone who joined the network without
+  explicitly setting `RELAY_URL` — the backend's hub connection could never reach the relay (inside
+  Docker `localhost` is the container itself), so it never authenticated and QR pairing generated a
+  QR pointing at an unreachable `localhost`. Self-hosters running their own relay still override
+  `RELAY_URL`. Updated `.env.example` accordingly.
+
+### Changed
+- Generating a pairing QR (`POST /api/patients/wallet/pair`) now ensures the clinic's relay hub is
+  connected before pre-registering the request, so the routing is set up even if the connection was
+  opened lazily.
 
 ### Fixed
 - **QR "scan to connect" pairing** was broken by the multi-clinic relay routing (v0.8.0): pairing
diff --git a/backend/.env.example b/backend/.env.example
index 71e9634..e8fcd2e 100644
--- a/backend/.env.example
+++ b/backend/.env.example
@@ -40,7 +40,11 @@ FRONTEND_PORT=3000
 # /hub with its own Ed25519 signing key, so no shared secret is needed.
 # RELAY_TOKEN is OPTIONAL/LEGACY — set it only for a private relay that also
 # gates on a shared token (then use the SAME value here and on the relay).
-RELAY_URL=http://localhost:8080
+# Defaults to the hosted relay (https://network.temetro.com) when unset, so
+# "Join Temetro Network" works out of the box; set RELAY_URL only to point at
+# your own relay. Do NOT use http://localhost — inside Docker that's the
+# container itself and the relay connection will silently fail.
+RELAY_URL=https://network.temetro.com
 RELAY_TOKEN=
 
 # (Legacy, pre-relay self-hosting.) A phone-reachable URL for the QR when NOT
diff --git a/backend/package.json b/backend/package.json
index d763eaf..1a7f98a 100644
--- a/backend/package.json
+++ b/backend/package.json
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "temetro-backend",
-  "version": "0.8.1",
+  "version": "0.8.2",
   "private": true,
   "type": "module",
   "description": "temetro backend — Express + Postgres API with Better Auth (email/password, organizations) and org-scoped patient records.",
diff --git a/backend/src/env.ts b/backend/src/env.ts
index 30ef97e..fb63cb2 100644
--- a/backend/src/env.ts
+++ b/backend/src/env.ts
@@ -35,7 +35,11 @@ const schema = z.object({
   // its own Ed25519 signing key, so no shared secret is needed. RELAY_TOKEN is
   // now *optional/legacy* — set it only for a private relay that also gates on a
   // shared token (must then match the relay's RELAY_TOKEN).
-  RELAY_URL: z.string().min(1).default("http://localhost:8080"),
+  //
+  // Defaults to the hosted relay so "Join Temetro Network" works out of the box;
+  // override only when running your own relay. (A `localhost` default silently
+  // fails inside Docker, where localhost is the container itself.)
+  RELAY_URL: z.string().min(1).default("https://network.temetro.com"),
   RELAY_TOKEN: z.string().default(""),
   // Public, device-reachable URL of this backend's wallet relay, baked into the
   // QR a patient scans. Optional — when unset we derive it from the request host
diff --git a/backend/src/routes/patients-wallet.ts b/backend/src/routes/patients-wallet.ts
index 1b9e536..89dbbc3 100644
--- a/backend/src/routes/patients-wallet.ts
+++ b/backend/src/routes/patients-wallet.ts
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ import {
 } from "../middleware/auth.js";
 import { emitToWallet } from "../realtime.js";
 import { recordActivity } from "../services/activity.js";
-import { expectResponse } from "../services/relay-client.js";
+import { connectOrg, expectResponse } from "../services/relay-client.js";
 import * as patientService from "../services/patients.js";
 import { awaitQuickTunnelUrl } from "../services/relay-url.js";
 import { getNetworkEnabled } from "../services/signing.js";
@@ -95,6 +95,9 @@ patientsWalletRouter.post(
       );
       // No wallet number to `wallet:send` to yet, so pre-register the request id
       // with the relay so the scanning device's response routes back to us.
+      // Ensure the hub is (re)connected first; if it's still mid-handshake the
+      // on-auth re-registration of pending requests will catch this one.
+      await connectOrg(req.organizationId!);
       expectResponse(req.organizationId!, view.id);
       res.status(201).json({
         ...view,
diff --git a/backend/src/services/relay-client.ts b/backend/src/services/relay-client.ts
index 726a1dd..7bdf3dd 100644
--- a/backend/src/services/relay-client.ts
+++ b/backend/src/services/relay-client.ts
@@ -49,7 +49,9 @@ export function expectResponse(orgId: string, requestId: string): void {
 }
 
 // Open (and authenticate) a hub connection for a clinic, if not already open.
-// Idempotent — safe to call on startup and again when an org joins the network.
+// Idempotent — safe to call on startup, when an org joins the network, and
+// before generating a pairing QR. The socket auto-reconnects on its own, so an
+// existing entry is left as-is.
 export async function connectOrg(orgId: string): Promise<void> {
   if (hubs.has(orgId)) return;
 
diff --git a/frontend/package.json b/frontend/package.json
index 56c19a6..3a2805b 100644
--- a/frontend/package.json
+++ b/frontend/package.json
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "frontend",
-  "version": "0.8.1",
+  "version": "0.8.2",
   "private": true,
   "scripts": {
     "dev": "next dev",
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index 69a1474..37c173a 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "temetro",
-  "version": "0.8.1",
+  "version": "0.8.2",
   "private": true,
   "devDependencies": {
     "shadcn": "^4.11.0"