Vodafone and bereavement: Everything you need to know

When there's a death in the family, admin is the last thing you want to think about, which is why Vodafone has a dedicated UK bereavement team in place to help you through the contract cancelling process.

If you, or someone you know, has been affected by bereavement and needs to close the Vodafone UK account(s) of the deceased, there is a longstanding specialist team at Vodafone dedicated to helping you.

Here’s what you need to know.

How can I contact Vodafone UK about a bereavement?

You can call our dedicated team for free on 0808 005 7450. They are available Monday to Saturday 08.00-20.00.

If you would prefer not to talk on the phone, there is an online bereavement form on the Vodafone UK website that you can complete instead.

How long will I have to wait to speak to someone in the bereavement team?

If the team is busy when you call and you are placed in a queue, you’ll be told how long you’ll have to wait and will be given the option to get a call back at a time that’s convenient for you.

During the call, you will be sent a text message with more ways to reach us.

What information about the deceased do I need to have?

In addition to your own personal details, you will need to have the following information:

what kind of account they had with Vodafone – mobile, broadband or both;
their full name;
their mobile number (you can add up to four different numbers if they had more than one);
their Vodafone account number, if you have it – this is optional;
their date of birth;
their address.

You will also need to have the death certificate of the deceased to provide some information from it.

Do I have to send the death certificate to Vodafone?

No, you don’t. But you will need:

to know the death certificate’s registration number (this should be in the top-right corner of the death certificate);
to know the date of death;
to have a photo or scan of the death certificate.

Can I email this information to you?

Please complete the online bereavement form or contact Vodafone’s dedicated UK bereavement team by phone (0808 005 7450).

Why do I have to provide all this information?

Fraudsters and other criminals will often try to commit identity theft and other types of fraud under the guise of bereavement. Vodafone must have a process in place to protect against this type of criminal activity.

Do I need to have power of attorney to cancel the deceased’s Vodafone contract?

No, you don’t. But if the deceased was the account user and not the contract owner, and the contract owner is incapable of answering Vodafone’s security questions because of dementia or a critical illness, for example, then someone with power of attorney can step in to help close the account at this point.