diff --git a/swaybar/bar.c b/swaybar/bar.c
index a34e4ad5..1439a11c 100644
--- a/swaybar/bar.c
+++ b/swaybar/bar.c
@@ -155,10 +155,12 @@ bool determine_bar_visibility(struct swaybar *bar, bool moving_layer) {
 	if (visible != bar->visible) {
 		bar->visible = visible;
 
-		wlr_log(WLR_DEBUG, "Sending %s signal to status command",
-				visible ? "cont" : "stop");
-		kill(bar->status->pid,
-				visible ? bar->status->cont_signal : bar->status->stop_signal);
+		if (bar->status) {
+			wlr_log(WLR_DEBUG, "Sending %s signal to status command",
+					visible ? "cont" : "stop");
+			kill(bar->status->pid, visible ?
+					bar->status->cont_signal : bar->status->stop_signal);
+		}
 	}
 
 	return visible;