What to do if…
essential services are in the name of a person who died and shutoff notices may be coming

What to do now

1. Make a one-page services list.
   Write the property address, who lives there now, whether the home is occupied or empty, and every essential service tied to the property: gas, electricity, water, broadband, landline, and any heat network. Add account numbers from bills, emails, apps, bank statements, meter cupboards, or post.

2. Photograph the current position before calling.
   Take photos of gas and electricity meters showing the reading and meter serial number. Photograph prepayment meter screens, top-up keys or cards, water meter readings if accessible, router or landline account labels if useful, and every shutoff, arrears, or final notice showing dates.

3. Call the gas and electricity supplier first if there is any shutoff risk.
   Say the account holder has died, the property is occupied or being checked, and you are trying to prevent disconnection while the account is transferred. Ask them to note the death, pause any avoidable disconnection or debt action where possible, confirm the current account status, and tell you the exact steps to set up the account in the responsible living person’s name or an executor or administrator arrangement.

4. Ask the energy supplier for the practical details before ending the call.
   Ask for the process name, documents needed, current balance, last payment date, whether any disconnection, prepayment meter, warrant, or smart meter action is recorded, the earliest relevant action date, and a call reference number. If there are separate gas and electricity suppliers, contact both.

5. If there is a prepayment meter, ask about emergency credit and lost access to top-ups.
   Explain that the account holder has died and you need to keep heat and power available. Ask how to top up safely, whether any debt is being recovered through the meter, and what they can do if the key, card, app, or online account belonged to the person who died.

6. Contact the water company, but treat the risk differently.
   For a household water supply, the main immediate issue is usually account transfer and debt handling rather than disconnection for unpaid bills. Tell the water company the account holder has died, say whether the home is occupied, ask them to update the account safely, and ask what they need from the occupier, executor, or administrator.

7. Contact the broadband or phone provider if the service is needed for work, alarms, care calls, or emergency contact.
   Say the account holder has died and you need to keep or alter the service without an avoidable break. Ask for their bereavement process, whether service can continue while the account is changed, and what happens to any contract, router, landline number, or linked account.

8. If you live at the address, ask how to become the responsible occupier from a clear date.
   Give today’s meter readings where relevant and ask whether the supplier will open a new account from the date of death, today, or another agreed date. Do not guess if you are unsure; ask them to record that responsibility is still being clarified.

9. If the property is empty, say that clearly.
   Ask each supplier how they handle an empty property after a death, what minimum payments or standing charges may continue, and what prevents a mistaken assumption that nobody needs supply. For gas and electricity, ask whether any safety checks, access arrangements, or meter readings are needed.

10. Ask for extra support if anyone affected may need it.
    For gas and electricity, ask about the Priority Services Register and whether the supplier or network operator can add support notes because of circumstances such as bereavement, age, disability, medical equipment, children in the home, language needs, or communication needs. For water, broadband, and phone services, ask about their equivalent extra support or vulnerable customer process.

11. If the caller will not help, escalate during the same contact.
    Ask for a supervisor or bereavement team and repeat: “I am reporting a death and trying to prevent avoidable loss of essential service while responsibility is transferred.” If the home is already off supply, or you are being threatened with energy disconnection and cannot get clear help, contact Citizens Advice Consumer Service or the relevant consumer advice service for your part of the UK.

12. Write down a short call log immediately after each contact.
    Record the date, time, phone number or webchat link used, person or team spoken to, reference number, what they agreed, what documents they asked for, and any deadline they gave.