diff --git a/.github/renovate.json5 b/.github/renovate.json5
index 4f136e5f6..e09f51e56 100644
--- a/.github/renovate.json5
+++ b/.github/renovate.json5
@@ -21,4 +21,6 @@
   automerge: false,
   baseBranches: ["dev"],
   dependencyDashboard: false,
+  // prevent special characters in branch names (otherwise git errors occur on windows)
+  branchNameStrict: true,
 }