diff --git a/core/internal/testutils/pgtest/pgtest.go b/core/internal/testutils/pgtest/pgtest.go
index 765c03e1d70..228990c7ba3 100644
--- a/core/internal/testutils/pgtest/pgtest.go
+++ b/core/internal/testutils/pgtest/pgtest.go
@@ -18,8 +18,7 @@ func NewSqlxDB(t testing.TB) *sqlx.DB {
 	testutils.SkipShortDB(t)
 	dbURL := string(env.DatabaseURL.Get())
 	if dbURL == "" {
-		t.Errorf("you must provide a CL_DATABASE_URL environment variable")
-		return nil
+		t.Fatalf("you must provide a CL_DATABASE_URL environment variable")
 	}
 	return sqltest.NewDB(t, dbURL)
 }