Utilities After a Death: How to Transfer or Shut Off Electricity, Cable, Internet, and Subscriptions

After someone dies, the house often keeps doing what it has always done. The refrigerator hums. The porch light still comes on at dusk. The Wi-Fi router blinks like a tiny heartbeat in the corner. In the earliest days of grief, those ordinary details can feel strangely comforting—and also strangely urgent. Because utilities don’t pause for loss. They keep billing, keep renewing, keep pulling payments in the background, even when a home is empty or a family is scattered in different places.

If you’re here because you’re trying to figure out utilities after death—what to keep on, what to stop, what needs proof, and how to do it without creating new problems—you’re not alone. This is one of those tasks that sits quietly beside funeral arrangements and paperwork: not emotionally central, but practically important. Done thoughtfully, it can protect a home, prevent waste, reduce fraud risk, and make probate simpler later. Done in a rush, it can create avoidable complications, like frozen pipes, canceled service that’s hard to restart, or recurring charges that quietly drain an estate.

The goal isn’t to do everything in one day. The goal is to move in a calm sequence: first protect the home and any survivors living there, then stop unnecessary bills, then document what you changed so the estate can prove it later. If you want ready-to-use language for calling providers, Funeral.com’s guide How to Close Utility Accounts After a Death: Phone Scripts for Electric & Gas Companies can help you speak clearly even when you’re exhausted.

Start with one question: is anyone still living in the home?

Before you transfer anything, pause and name the situation. Many families assume utilities should be shut off quickly, but that can backfire if a spouse, roommate, or adult child is still living there—or if the home will be vacant but needs basic protection while the estate is settled.

If someone is living in the home, your priority is continuity. Electricity, gas, water, and internet often support safety and daily life, especially for medical devices, security systems, refrigeration, heating or cooling, and basic communication. In that case, the most practical route is usually to transfer utilities after death into the name of the person who will be paying the bills going forward.

If the home is vacant, your priority shifts to preservation. Many homes still need heat in winter to reduce the risk of frozen pipes, basic electricity for alarms or cameras, and sometimes water service for necessary maintenance. You can lower the plan or usage without shutting everything off completely. The “right” choice depends on climate, the condition of the home, and how long probate or a sale might take.

What you’re aiming for is a steady middle: keep what protects the property, cancel what wastes money, and record every change so you can explain it later.

What providers usually ask for (and how to gather it once)

Most utility and home-service companies follow a similar script when you call: they want to confirm you have authority to act, identify the account, and understand whether service should be transferred or stopped. The details vary, but families often feel relief when they assemble one small “provider packet” and reuse it across calls.

Typically, companies may request a copy of a death certificate, proof you are the executor or administrator, or proof you live at the service address. Some will accept a temporary arrangement while probate is pending; others require a new account holder right away. It can help to keep scanned copies of common documents in a secure folder, along with the account numbers and a simple call log. If you’re sorting through paperwork and passwords, Funeral.com’s guide Important Papers to Organize Before and After a Death is a gentle, practical roadmap for collecting what you’ll need without turning your kitchen table into a permanent filing cabinet.

One quiet tip: if you can, ask each provider for written confirmation by email (or a mailed letter) stating what changed, the effective date, and any final balance. That single step can save hours later if an estate question comes up.

Electricity and gas: keep it safe, then make it official

Electric and gas accounts are often the first ones families think about, partly because they’re expensive and partly because they affect the safety of the home. If the house will be vacant, you may still want electricity on for lighting, alarm systems, sump pumps, and basic monitoring. If it’s winter, heat can be the difference between a stable home and burst pipes.

If someone is staying in the home, transferring service usually means opening a new account in the survivor’s name and closing the deceased person’s account as of a certain date. Ask the provider what they consider the “final billing date” and whether they can backdate or prorate after you provide documentation. If the home is vacant, ask about a minimum service plan, seasonal settings, or budget billing options that may reduce surprises during a long estate timeline.

When you’re ready to call, it helps to sound steady and specific: “I’m calling to report a death, and I need to either transfer the account into a new name or close it with a final meter read.” If you’d like step-by-step wording you can read out loud, Funeral.com’s phone scripts for utility companies are designed for exactly this moment.

Water, trash, and local services: don’t let small bills become estate headaches

Water and municipal services often feel “smaller,” but they can become surprisingly complicated if they lapse. Trash and recycling may matter if someone is still in the home, and water service can matter for maintenance, landscaping requirements, or leak detection. In some areas, utilities that are tied to a property can eventually be treated as liens or claims against an estate if they remain unpaid, so it’s worth handling them deliberately rather than ignoring them.

If the home is vacant, you might reduce service frequency for trash (or pause it if your municipality allows). For water, ask whether you can set a minimal usage plan or whether a full shutoff could cause issues with sprinkler systems or plumbing. When in doubt, a short conversation with a local plumber or property manager can be more helpful than guessing.

Cable and internet: decide what supports safety and what is simply habit

Cable, streaming bundles, and internet service live in the gray zone between “home essential” and “nice to have.” If someone is living in the home, internet is often a real necessity—especially if work, school, or telehealth depends on it. If the home is vacant, internet may still be valuable for security cameras, smart locks, or monitored alarms.

This is where families often choose a practical compromise: keep internet but downgrade speed, or cancel cable but keep a basic connection. When you call, ask whether they can convert the plan without a contract reset, and whether equipment (modems, cable boxes) must be returned in person or can be mailed back. Get the return instructions in writing. Lost equipment fees are one of those quiet “estate leaks” that can show up months later when no one remembers where the box went.

If you’re also handling a web of everyday accounts—gym memberships, app renewals, deliveries—Funeral.com’s guide Closing Accounts and Subscriptions After a Death walks through the logic of what to cancel first, how to stop autopay, and how to prevent ongoing charges while you’re still gathering authority documents.

Subscriptions and autopay: stop the bleeding, then clean up the accounts

Subscriptions after a death can feel endless, not because each one is large, but because there are so many small renewals hiding in different places. A music subscription here. Cloud storage there. A meal kit, a news app, a professional membership, a password manager. In grief, it’s easy to miss the pattern until the bank statement starts to look unfamiliar.

A calm approach is to separate “billing” from “account closure.” Billing is the urgent part—stopping the money leak. Account closure is the slower part—cleaning up profiles, removing personal data, and documenting the final status.

If you can log in, cancel through the account settings and save confirmation screenshots. If you can’t log in, the fastest path is often through the billing channel: Apple subscriptions, Google Play subscriptions, PayPal, or the card issuer. Funeral.com’s guide Stop the Bleed: How to Cancel Subscriptions When You Can’t Log In focuses on the real-life situations families face when the email address or phone number needed for password resets is no longer accessible.

As you do this, keep an eye out for fraud risk. After a death, mail, statements, and dormant accounts can attract unwanted attention, especially if a home is vacant or mail piles up. The U.S. Postal Service explains how to properly forward or stop mail for a deceased person, including the need to show proof that you’re the appointed executor or administrator when you don’t share the same address, on the USPS guidance page. That step—getting mail under control—often makes the rest of the account work easier because it reduces missed bills, missed notices, and exposure.

Tracking changes during probate: build a simple executor utility checklist

Probate can make families feel like they’re living in two timelines: the emotional timeline of grief, and the legal timeline of authority and paperwork. It’s common to have a period where you’re responsible for a property and its bills, but you’re still waiting for formal letters of administration or executor documents. During that window, providers may offer temporary solutions, but you’ll want your documentation to be clear and organized.

Instead of trying to remember everything, treat it like a small project with a single notebook or spreadsheet. Record the provider name, account number (or last four digits), the date you called, who you spoke with, what they changed, the effective date, and what proof you sent. This kind of record becomes your “executor utility checklist” even if you never call it that. It can also prevent tension among family members, because you can answer questions with dates and confirmations rather than memory.

If you’re also dealing with online accounts and security concerns, Funeral.com’s 2026 checklist for closing a deceased person’s digital life and the related guide Digital Accounts After a Death: A Practical Closure Checklist can help you make sense of what should be closed, what can be memorialized, and how to reduce the risk of account takeovers while you’re waiting for formal authority.

When to keep utilities on in a vacant house

Families often ask whether it’s okay to keep utilities running in a vacant house. In many situations, it’s not only okay—it’s wise. A vacant home can deteriorate quickly without basic maintenance and monitoring. Heat matters in cold weather. Electricity may power dehumidifiers, sump pumps, or security systems. Even if you plan to sell the property, keeping the home stable may protect its value and prevent urgent repairs that are far more expensive than a few months of basic service.

There’s no universal setting that fits every home, but the principle is consistent: keep what prevents damage and supports security, and reduce what doesn’t. If money is tight, ask providers about lower-cost plans or budget billing. If the home is in a cold climate, consider consulting a local professional about safe winter settings and simple safeguards.

When to shut things off quickly to prevent waste and fraud

Some services should be canceled sooner rather than later—especially if no one is using them and they’re attached to autopay. Cable bundles that include premium add-ons, multiple streaming services, subscription boxes, and app renewals are common examples. The faster you stop those recurring charges, the easier it is to keep estate finances clean.

Also pay attention to anything that creates a security vulnerability. If a mobile phone line remains active on an unattended device, it could receive two-factor authentication codes. If an email account is left open on a shared computer, it could become a gateway into financial accounts. This is why “subscriptions after death” and “internet account after death” tasks overlap with privacy and fraud prevention, not just billing. You can’t control every risk, but you can reduce exposure by shutting down what’s no longer needed and documenting what you did.

A gentle note about timing, authority, and doing your best

It’s easy to feel behind when you’re handling practical tasks in grief. If you’re waiting for documents, if you’re not sure you’re “allowed” to make a change yet, or if you’re afraid you’ll say the wrong thing on a call, take a breath. Many companies have procedures for this because it’s common. You’re not the first person to call with a shaky voice. You don’t need perfect words. You need a few clear facts, a simple decision (transfer or close), and a way to keep records.

And if you’re also managing funeral arrangements in the background—service planning, travel, family communication—remember that this is still part of caring for the person who died. It’s the quiet kind of care: protecting their home, protecting their estate, and protecting the people who love them from preventable messes.

FAQs: Utilities, subscriptions, and home services after a death