diff --git a/src/routes/material.ts b/src/routes/material.ts
index 4fb4bad..a75f73d 100644
--- a/src/routes/material.ts
+++ b/src/routes/material.ts
@@ -122,7 +122,8 @@ router.delete('/material/' + IdValidate.parameter(), (req, res, next) => {
   if (!req.auth(res, ['write', 'dev', 'admin'], 'basic')) return;
 
   // check if there are still samples referencing this material
-  SampleModel.find({'material_id': new mongoose.Types.ObjectId(req.params.id)}).lean().exec((err, data) => {
+  SampleModel.find({'material_id': new mongoose.Types.ObjectId(req.params.id), status: {$ne: globals.status.del}})
+    .lean().exec((err, data) => {
     if (err) return next(err);
     if (data.length) {
       return res.status(400).json({status: 'Material still in use'});