diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..75c6182
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+__pycache__/
+*.pyc
+.pytest_cache/
diff --git a/task.py b/task.py
index 53cc8ed..e566f1e 100644
--- a/task.py
+++ b/task.py
@@ -10,10 +10,24 @@
 from commands.done import mark_done
 
 
+DEFAULT_CONFIG = """# Task CLI configuration
+storage:
+  format: json
+  max_tasks: 1000
+
+display:
+  color: true
+  unicode: true
+"""
+
+
 def load_config():
-    """Load configuration from file."""
+    """Load configuration from file, falling back to defaults if missing."""
     config_path = Path.home() / ".config" / "task-cli" / "config.yaml"
-    # NOTE: This will crash if config doesn't exist - known bug for bounty testing
+    if not config_path.exists():
+        config_path.parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+        config_path.write_text(DEFAULT_CONFIG)
+        return DEFAULT_CONFIG
     with open(config_path) as f:
         return f.read()
 
diff --git a/test_task.py b/test_task.py
index ba98e43..22e075e 100644
--- a/test_task.py
+++ b/test_task.py
@@ -1,10 +1,13 @@
 """Basic tests for task CLI."""
 
 import json
+import os
+import shutil
 import pytest
 from pathlib import Path
 from commands.add import add_task, validate_description
 from commands.done import validate_task_id
+from task import load_config
 
 
 def test_validate_description():
@@ -28,3 +31,27 @@ def test_validate_task_id():
 
     with pytest.raises(ValueError):
         validate_task_id(tasks, 99)
+
+
+def test_load_config_missing_file(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+    """Test that load_config handles missing config file gracefully."""
+    # Redirect HOME to a temp directory
+    monkeypatch.setattr(Path, "home", lambda: tmp_path)
+
+    # Ensure config doesn't exist
+    config_dir = tmp_path / ".config" / "task-cli"
+    if config_dir.exists():
+        shutil.rmtree(config_dir)
+
+    # Should not crash, should create default config
+    config_content = load_config()
+    assert "storage:" in config_content
+    assert "display:" in config_content
+
+    # Config file should now exist
+    config_path = config_dir / "config.yaml"
+    assert config_path.exists()
+
+    # Loading again should return the same content
+    config_content2 = load_config()
+    assert config_content2 == config_content