diff --git a/refs.c b/refs.c
index b0106b8162..d8dc86b1f5 100644
--- a/refs.c
+++ b/refs.c
@@ -612,7 +612,7 @@ static int write_pseudoref(const char *pseudoref, const unsigned char *sha1,
 	if (fd < 0) {
 		strbuf_addf(err, "could not open '%s' for writing: %s",
 			    filename, strerror(errno));
-		return -1;
+		goto done;
 	}
 
 	if (old_sha1) {