diff --git a/git-flow-release b/git-flow-release
index 38e1790..9aedf3c 100644
--- a/git-flow-release
+++ b/git-flow-release
@@ -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.release || echo release/)
+PREFIX=$(git config --get gitflow.prefix.release)
 
 usage() {
 	echo "usage: git flow release [list] [-v]"