diff --git a/src/qemu/qemu_hotplug.c b/src/qemu/qemu_hotplug.c
index c334f52570..670e7d3a01 100644
--- a/src/qemu/qemu_hotplug.c
+++ b/src/qemu/qemu_hotplug.c
@@ -321,7 +321,7 @@ qemuDomainFindOrCreateSCSIDiskController(struct qemud_driver *driver,
         return NULL;
     }
     cont->type = VIR_DOMAIN_CONTROLLER_TYPE_SCSI;
-    cont->idx = 0;
+    cont->idx = controller;
     cont->model = -1;
 
     VIR_INFO0("No SCSI controller present, hotplugging one");