diff --git a/drivers/scsi/scsi_lib.c b/drivers/scsi/scsi_lib.c
index 26e1afec564..dc1c2f4520f 100644
--- a/drivers/scsi/scsi_lib.c
+++ b/drivers/scsi/scsi_lib.c
@@ -1011,7 +1011,8 @@ int scsi_init_io(struct scsi_cmnd *cmd, gfp_t gfp_mask)
 	struct request *rq = cmd->request;
 	int error;
 
-	BUG_ON(!rq->nr_phys_segments);
+	if (WARN_ON_ONCE(!rq->nr_phys_segments))
+		return -EINVAL;
 
 	error = scsi_init_sgtable(rq, &cmd->sdb, gfp_mask);
 	if (error)