diff --git a/evennia/scripts/taskhandler.py b/evennia/scripts/taskhandler.py
index d119506871..0a3e6174a2 100644
--- a/evennia/scripts/taskhandler.py
+++ b/evennia/scripts/taskhandler.py
@@ -388,9 +388,8 @@ class TaskHandler:
         delta = timedelta(seconds=timedelay)
         comp_time = now + delta
         # get an open task id
-        used_ids = list(self.tasks.keys())
         task_id = 1
-        while task_id in used_ids:
+        while task_id in self.tasks:
             task_id += 1
 
         # record the task to the tasks dictionary