diff --git a/.github/workflows/new_problem_check.yml b/.github/workflows/new_problem_check.yml
index 5a13ee6..5f2917c 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/new_problem_check.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/new_problem_check.yml
@@ -2,6 +2,8 @@ name: New Problem Check
 
 on:
   push:
+    branches:
+      - main
     paths:
       - "utils/new_problem.yaml"
   pull_request:
@@ -32,6 +34,7 @@ jobs:
           pip install -r utils/requirements.txt
 
       - name: Run New Problem Check
+        if: ${{ hashFiles('utils/new_problem.yaml') != '' }}
         run: |
           python utils/validate_yaml.py utils/new_problem.yaml
 
diff --git a/utils/README.md b/utils/README.md
index 3d3fbee..2ad9e5e 100644
--- a/utils/README.md
+++ b/utils/README.md
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ This folder contains utility scripts for working with the YAML format to describ
 
 The intended way of adding a new problem to the repository is thus as follows:
 
-* Change the [new_problem.yaml](new_problem.yaml) template file to fit the new problem.
+* Create a file in 'utils/new_problem.yaml' based on the template (see below).
 * Create a PR with the changes (for example with a fork).
 
 What happens in the background then is:
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ What happens in the background then is:
 * Then the PR should be reviewed manually.
 * When the PR is merged into the main branch, a second script runs (which doesn't exist yet), that adds the content of [new_problem.yaml](new_problem.yaml) to the [problems.yaml](../problems.yaml) file, and reverts the changes to the new_problem.yaml.
 
-:alert: Note that the GitHubActions do not exist yet either, this is a WIP.
+:warning: Note that the GitHubActions do not exist yet either, this is a WIP.
 
 ## validate_yaml.py
 
@@ -23,9 +23,27 @@ This script checks the new content for the following:
 * The required fields are present.
 * Specific fields are unique across the new set of problems (e.g. name)
 
-:alert: Execute from root of the repository. Tested with python 3.12
+:warning: Execute from root of the repository. Tested with python 3.12
 
 ```bash
 pip install -r utils/requirements.txt
 python utils/validate_yaml.py utils/new_problem.yaml
 ```
+
+## new problem example
+
+```yaml
+- name: example-problem-name
+  suite/generator/single: suite
+  objectives: '1'
+  dimensionality: scalable
+  variable type: continuous
+  constraints: 'no'
+  dynamic: 'no'
+  noise: 'no'
+  multimodal: 'yes'
+  multi-fidelity: 'no'
+  reference: ''
+  implementation: ''
+  source (real-world/artificial): ''
+  textual description: 'This is a dummy template'
diff --git a/utils/new_problem.yaml b/utils/new_problem.yaml
deleted file mode 100644
index 2c300e1..0000000
--- a/utils/new_problem.yaml
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,14 +0,0 @@
-- name: template
-  suite/generator/single: suite
-  objectives: '2'
-  dimensionality: scalable
-  variable type: continuous
-  constraints: 'no'
-  dynamic: 'no'
-  noise: 'no'
-  multimodal: 'yes'
-  multi-fidelity: 'no'
-  reference: ''
-  implementation: ''
-  source (real-world/artificial): ''
-  textual description: 'This is a dummy template'