diff --git a/drivers/i2c/i2c-core-base.c b/drivers/i2c/i2c-core-base.c
index 38af18645133..c480ca385ffb 100644
--- a/drivers/i2c/i2c-core-base.c
+++ b/drivers/i2c/i2c-core-base.c
@@ -185,7 +185,7 @@ static int i2c_generic_bus_free(struct i2c_adapter *adap)
 int i2c_generic_scl_recovery(struct i2c_adapter *adap)
 {
 	struct i2c_bus_recovery_info *bri = adap->bus_recovery_info;
-	int i = 0, scl = 1, ret;
+	int i = 0, scl = 1, ret = 0;
 
 	if (bri->prepare_recovery)
 		bri->prepare_recovery(adap);