Cancelling Utilities and Subscriptions After a Death

Cancelling Utilities and Subscriptions After a Death

Cancelling utilities and subscriptions is one of the more tedious parts of bereavement administration. This guide takes you through it category by category.

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Before you start: what you'll need

• Account numbers (found on bills)
• Your contact details and relationship to the deceased
• A death certificate (some require a copy)
• The deceased's National Insurance number (for some government accounts)

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Electricity and gas

1. Take a meter reading on the day of death
2. Contact the energy supplier's bereavement team
3. Tell them the account holder has died and provide the meter reading
4. They will arrange to transfer, close, or issue a final bill

If the deceased lived alone: Request an account in the estate's name to maintain connection while the property is managed.

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Broadband and home phone

Most providers offer 30-day bereavement cancellation windows, often with no exit fee even mid-contract.

1. Call customer service and ask for the bereavement or cancellations team
2. Request cancellation and ask that any early termination fees be waived
3. Return any equipment to avoid charges

Major providers' numbers:

• BT: 0800 800 150
• Virgin Media: 0800 052 0202
• Sky: 0333 759 9744
• TalkTalk: 0345 172 0088

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Mobile phone

1. Call the network's bereavement team
2. Provide the mobile number, death certificate details, and account PIN (if known)
3. Request cancellation and ask for any credit balance to be refunded

If you don't know the PIN, the network will usually accept death certificate details as verification.

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TV Licence

Visit tvlicensing.co.uk or call 0300 555 0286. A refund will be issued for any complete unused months.

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Streaming services

• Netflix: Account > Membership > Cancel
• Spotify: Account > Subscription > Cancel Premium
• Amazon Prime: Account > Memberships > Cancel Prime
• Disney+: Account > Subscription > Cancel

If you can't access accounts, contact customer support with the deceased's details.

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Direct debits: the right sequence

Do not cancel direct debits from the bank before notifying each organisation. The right order:

1. Contact each organisation to cancel the service
2. Only then close the bank account or cancel remaining direct debits

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Keep a log

Service	Account Number	Date contacted	Outcome	Refund due
Energy
Broadband
Mobile

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