diff --git a/cmd/restic/cmd_check.go b/cmd/restic/cmd_check.go
index cee676766..bcaa46156 100644
--- a/cmd/restic/cmd_check.go
+++ b/cmd/restic/cmd_check.go
@@ -164,7 +164,10 @@ func runCheck(opts CheckOptions, gopts GlobalOptions, args []string) error {
 	}
 
 	cleanup := prepareCheckCache(opts, &gopts)
-	defer cleanup()
+	AddCleanupHandler(func() error {
+		cleanup()
+		return nil
+	})
 
 	repo, err := OpenRepository(gopts)
 	if err != nil {