diff --git a/tests/serial_failover.py b/tests/serial_failover.py
index 8ae5a46..d12040e 100644
--- a/tests/serial_failover.py
+++ b/tests/serial_failover.py
@@ -86,7 +86,7 @@
         self.assertTrue(self.controller.switch_addr is not None,
                         "Controller startup failed, no switch addr")
         request = message.features_request()
-        reply, pkt = self.controller.transact(request, timeout=10)
+        reply, pkt = self.controller.transact(request, timeout=20)
         self.assertTrue(reply is not None,
                         "Did not complete features_request for handshake")
         serial_failover_logger.info("Connected " +