diff --git a/bridge/e2e/init.js b/bridge/e2e/init.js
index f7c8dce9..bcdb3519 100755
--- a/bridge/e2e/init.js
+++ b/bridge/e2e/init.js
@@ -3,6 +3,9 @@ const config = require('../package.json').detox;
 
 before(async () => {
   await detox.init(config);
+  // needs to be called before any usage of firestore
+  await firebase.firestore().settings({ persistence: true });
+  await firebase.firestore().settings({ persistence: false });
 });
 
 after(async () => {