diff --git a/lib/media/streaming_engine.js b/lib/media/streaming_engine.js
index b7f2cc8908..74ba285afd 100644
--- a/lib/media/streaming_engine.js
+++ b/lib/media/streaming_engine.js
@@ -1827,12 +1827,10 @@ shaka.media.StreamingEngine = class {
     });
 
     if (!waitingForAnotherStreamToRecover) {
-      if (this.config_.maxDisabledTime > 0) {
-        const handled = this.playerInterface_.disableStream(
-            mediaState.stream, this.config_.maxDisabledTime);
-        if (handled) {
-          return;
-        }
+      const handled = this.playerInterface_.disableStream(
+          mediaState.stream, this.config_.maxDisabledTime);
+      if (handled) {
+        return;
       }
       // Reduction schedule: 80%, 60%, 40%, 20%, 16%, 12%, 8%, 4%, fail.
       // Note: percentages are used for comparisons to avoid rounding errors.
@@ -2722,11 +2720,9 @@ shaka.media.StreamingEngine = class {
     // use the backoff system to delay and backoff the error handling.
     await this.failureCallbackBackoff_.attempt();
     this.destroyer_.ensureNotDestroyed();
-
-    const maxDisabledTime = this.getDisabledTime_(error);
     // Try to recover from network errors
-    if (error.category === shaka.util.Error.Category.NETWORK &&
-        maxDisabledTime > 0) {
+    if (error.category === shaka.util.Error.Category.NETWORK) {
+      const maxDisabledTime = this.getDisabledTime_(error);
       error.handled = this.playerInterface_.disableStream(
           mediaState.stream, maxDisabledTime);
 
diff --git a/lib/player.js b/lib/player.js
index 3e0d215a19..a6429a309b 100644
--- a/lib/player.js
+++ b/lib/player.js
@@ -7227,6 +7227,10 @@ shaka.Player = class extends shaka.util.FakeEventTarget {
       return false;
     }
 
+    if (disableTime == 0) {
+      return false;
+    }
+
     // It only makes sense to disable a stream if we have an alternative else we
     // end up disabling all variants.
     const hasAltStream = this.manifest_.variants.some((variant) => {
diff --git a/test/media/streaming_engine_unit.js b/test/media/streaming_engine_unit.js
index 4989005047..6a5644730a 100644
--- a/test/media/streaming_engine_unit.js
+++ b/test/media/streaming_engine_unit.js
@@ -2256,7 +2256,9 @@ describe('StreamingEngine', () => {
 
           onError.and.callFake((error) => {
             expect(error.code).toBe(shaka.util.Error.Code.HTTP_ERROR);
+            expect(error.handled).toBeFalsy();
           });
+          disableStream.and.callFake((stream, disableTime) => disableTime != 0);
 
           // Here we go!
           streamingEngine.switchVariant(variant);
@@ -2265,7 +2267,7 @@ describe('StreamingEngine', () => {
           playing = true;
 
           await runTest();
-          expect(disableStream).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+          expect(disableStream).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
         });
 
     it('always tries to recover shaka.util.Error.Code.SEGMENT_MISSING',