diff --git a/eth/handler.go b/eth/handler.go
index fb82c16fa7..ab57bd44b3 100644
--- a/eth/handler.go
+++ b/eth/handler.go
@@ -58,10 +58,6 @@ var (
 	syncChallengeTimeout = 15 * time.Second // Time allowance for a node to reply to the sync progress challenge
 )
 
-// errIncompatibleConfig is returned if the requested protocols and configs are
-// not compatible (low protocol version restrictions and high requirements).
-var errIncompatibleConfig = errors.New("incompatible configuration")
-
 func errResp(code errCode, format string, v ...interface{}) error {
 	return fmt.Errorf("%v - %v", code, fmt.Sprintf(format, v...))
 }