diff --git a/kdumpctl b/kdumpctl
index 40dcb1e..edf9d1b 100755
--- a/kdumpctl
+++ b/kdumpctl
@@ -142,6 +142,7 @@ rebuild_kdump_initrd()
 
 rebuild_initrd()
 {
+	local _ret
 	if [[ ! -w $(dirname "$TARGET_INITRD") ]]; then
 		derror "$(dirname "$TARGET_INITRD") does not have write permission. Cannot rebuild $TARGET_INITRD"
 		return 1
@@ -152,8 +153,10 @@ rebuild_initrd()
 	else
 		rebuild_kdump_initrd
 	fi
+	_ret=$?
 
 	set_vmcore_creation_status 'clear' "$VMCORE_CREATION_STATUS"
+	return $_ret
 }
 
 #$1: the files to be checked with IFS=' '