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The Revised rules are pretty clear on this, pg 188 states that "the Loremaster sets up a Tolerance rating for the encounter, indicating the maximum number of rolls that the companions may collectively fail before their behaviour puts an end to their chances of getting further assistance or cooperation. When the company fails a number of rolls in excess of the Tolerance rating set for the encounter, the meeting is essentially over: from that moment on, the players may not propose or attempt any further tasks".

On the same page it is stated that minimum Tolerance is 1.

So Stormcrow et al is right. Sometimes rules discussions here on the forum raise more confusion than necessary when people cite the old ruleset (adventurer's companion etc.). The rules in question have often been clarified between editions, precisely because they where a bit unclear in the original set.

Thanks Dunkelbrink (and Stormcrow). I knew I'd seen that clarified somewhere but wasn't sure where, and I didn't have the rulebook handy to check its precise wording.

So yes, the idea of encounters having a minimum tolerance of 1 is that you can get away with one failure, but only one. A second causes the other side to stop listening, or tell you to clear off, or become hostile (depending on circumstances).

I don't see any reason why you couldn't have an encounter with a tolerance of zero, though, if you want to make the heroes' lives extra difficult!