diff --git a/git-flow-hotfix b/git-flow-hotfix
index 357eb78..347b811 100644
--- a/git-flow-hotfix
+++ b/git-flow-hotfix
@@ -13,9 +13,10 @@
 #
 
 gitflow_require_git_repo
+gitflow_require_initialized
 gitflow_load_settings
 VERSION_PREFIX=$(git config --get gitflow.prefix.versiontag)
-PREFIX=$(git config --get gitflow.prefix.hotfix || echo hotfix/)
+PREFIX=$(git config --get gitflow.prefix.hotfix)
 
 usage() {
 	echo "usage: git flow hotfix [list] [-v]"