diff --git a/src/sysbench.c b/src/sysbench.c
index c04f424..8fac030 100644
--- a/src/sysbench.c
+++ b/src/sysbench.c
@@ -925,6 +925,7 @@ static void *eventgen_thread_proc(void *arg)
       log_text(LOG_FATAL,
                "The event queue is full. This means the worker threads are "
                "unable to keep up with the specified event generation rate");
+      sb_globals.error = 1;
       return NULL;
     }
 
diff --git a/tests/t/opt_rate.t b/tests/t/opt_rate.t
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..24448de
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/t/opt_rate.t
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+########################################################################
+Tests for the --rate option (aka the limited rate mode)
+########################################################################
+
+# Failing to deliver the requested rate should result in a non-zero exit code
+  $ sysbench --rate=2000000000 cpu run --verbosity=1
+  FATAL: The event queue is full. This means the worker threads are unable to keep up with the specified event generation rate
+  [1]