diff --git a/rhodecode/lib/jsonalchemy.py b/rhodecode/lib/jsonalchemy.py
index aad07a55..d33f4d8f 100644
--- a/rhodecode/lib/jsonalchemy.py
+++ b/rhodecode/lib/jsonalchemy.py
@@ -82,8 +82,9 @@ class JSONEncodedObj(sqlalchemy.types.TypeDecorator):
             try:
                 value = ext_json.json.loads(value)
             except Exception:
-                if self.safe and self.default is not None:
-                    return self.default()
+                if self.safe:
+                    # Return default or empty dict for safety
+                    return self.default() if self.default is not None else {}
                 else:
                     raise
         return value