diff --git a/packages/appium/lib/appium.js b/packages/appium/lib/appium.js
index f267faa71..5bd8cc6a1 100644
--- a/packages/appium/lib/appium.js
+++ b/packages/appium/lib/appium.js
@@ -418,7 +418,7 @@ class AppiumDriver extends DriverCore {
       );
 
       // set the New Command Timeout for the inner driver
-      driverInstance.startNewCommandTimeout();
+      await driverInstance.startNewCommandTimeout();
 
       // apply initial values to Appium settings (if provided)
       if (driverInstance.isW3CProtocol() && !_.isEmpty(w3cSettings)) {