diff --git a/src/Converters/StringConverters.cs b/src/Converters/StringConverters.cs
index a3e3bbba..585e0f02 100644
--- a/src/Converters/StringConverters.cs
+++ b/src/Converters/StringConverters.cs
@@ -87,6 +87,8 @@ namespace SourceGit.Converters
         public static readonly FuncValueConverter<string, string> TrimRefsPrefix =
             new FuncValueConverter<string, string>(v =>
             {
+                if (v == null)
+                    return string.Empty;
                 if (v.StartsWith("refs/heads/", StringComparison.Ordinal))
                     return v.Substring(11);
                 if (v.StartsWith("refs/remotes/", StringComparison.Ordinal))