diff --git a/node_reference/node_reference.module b/node_reference/node_reference.module
index 2fbaf1b..c5a30da 100644
--- a/node_reference/node_reference.module
+++ b/node_reference/node_reference.module
@@ -393,7 +393,7 @@ function node_reference_field_formatter_view($entity_type, $entity, $field, $ins
     case 'node_reference_default':
     case 'node_reference_plain':
       foreach ($items as $delta => $item) {
-        if ($item['access']) {
+        if (isset($item['access']) && $item['access']) {
           $node = $item['node'];
           if ($display['type'] == 'node_reference_default') {
             $uri = entity_uri('node', $node);