PlayStation account after a death: the wallet holds real money

When someone dies and they were a PlayStation user, their Sony account can hold more than a gaming profile. There may be real money sitting in the PSN wallet, an active PS Plus subscription billing every month, and a digital game library that could be worth hundreds of pounds – even if, under Sony’s terms, that library cannot be transferred or inherited.

This guide covers everything UK families and executors need to know: how to contact PlayStation support, what to do about wallet credit, how to cancel PS Plus, what happens to digital purchases, and the specific challenge of two-step verification.

Quick reference:

How to contact PlayStation

Sony Interactive Entertainment handles PlayStation accounts through its general support channels. There is no dedicated bereavement team in the way banks often have, but PlayStation support agents can process account closure and subscription cancellation requests when a death certificate is provided.

Phone: Call 0203 538 2665, Monday to Saturday between 10:30am and 7:30pm. This is the most direct route for situations involving deceased accounts, where you may need to explain the circumstances and cannot simply use the online self-service options.

Twitter / X: The @AskPS_UK account is staffed daily from 9am to 11pm. This channel is useful for straightforward queries and directing you to the right process, but sensitive account requests will almost certainly be redirected to phone or secure form submission.

Online: Visit playstation.com/en-gb/support to access the support portal. From there, navigate to Account & Security for options related to account closure.

Before calling, gather the following:

• The email address used as the PlayStation sign-in ID
• The PSN Online ID (the username that appeared in games)
• The console serial number, if you have access to the hardware
• Any subscription confirmation emails from PlayStation or Sony

PSN wallet credit – a real asset

The PlayStation Store wallet (also called PSN wallet or PlayStation wallet) lets users load money into their account to spend in the PlayStation Store. It works like a prepaid balance: people top it up with cash, gift cards, or PlayStation Store vouchers, and then use it to buy games, add-ons, or subscriptions.

If there is a balance in the wallet when the account holder dies, that money is part of the estate. It is real money – not loyalty points or tokens – and should be treated accordingly.

Sony’s cancellation policy states that wallet top-ups cannot be refunded as standard: “You cannot cancel a PSN Wallet top-up.” (Source: PlayStation Store Cancellation Policy, last verified May 2026.) However, this policy was written for living account holders. Where an account closure is being requested on behalf of a deceased person’s estate, it is reasonable to ask PlayStation support about a goodwill refund of any unspent wallet balance at the point of closure.

When speaking to support, be explicit: explain that you are the executor or next of kin, that you are requesting account closure on behalf of the estate, and that you are asking about the wallet balance. Sony can make discretionary decisions in these circumstances, even if no automatic entitlement exists.

If a refund is not possible, consider whether there are digital purchases that could be made from the wallet balance before the account is closed – such as a game a family member could access – though be aware that digital purchases are non-transferable (see the digital library section below).

To check the wallet balance: If you have the account credentials, sign in at playstation.com or on any signed-in PlayStation console and navigate to Account → Wallet. The balance appears there.

PS Plus subscription – cancel to stop billing

PlayStation Plus (PS Plus) is a subscription service with three tiers:

Subscriptions renew automatically – monthly, every three months, or annually depending on the plan chosen. As of May 2026, monthly prices start at £7.99 for Essential. The subscription will keep billing until it is cancelled, so this is one of the first things to act on.

(Source: PlayStation Plus, last verified May 2026.)

If you have account access

Sign in at playstation.com and go to Account Management → Subscription → PS Plus → Cancel Auto-Renew. This stops future billing at the end of the current subscription period – it does not trigger an immediate refund, but no further charges will be taken.

Alternatively, on a PS4 or PS5 console: go to Settings → Account Management → Account Information → PlayStation Subscriptions.

If you do not have account access

Call PlayStation support on 0203 538 2665 and explain that you need to cancel a PS Plus subscription for a deceased account holder. Have the sign-in ID (email address) and any subscription confirmation emails ready. PlayStation support can cancel the subscription on your behalf with a death certificate.

What happens to PS Plus games when the subscription is cancelled:

Games downloaded as part of the monthly PS Plus selection are only accessible while the subscription is active. They are not purchased outright – they are licensed for the duration of the subscription. Once the subscription ends, those games can no longer be played, even if they were downloaded to the console.

Games purchased from the PlayStation Store separately (outside of PS Plus) are not affected by the PS Plus cancellation.

Digital game library – non-transferable

This is the area most families find hardest to understand, and it matters because digital game libraries can represent a significant financial investment.

When someone buys a game from the PlayStation Store, they are purchasing a personal, non-transferable licence to play that game. They do not own the game in the same sense as owning a physical disc. Sony’s terms of service are explicit: “Your licence to use Digital Products is not transferable unless your local applicable laws say it must be.” (Source: PlayStation Terms of Service, last verified May 2026.)

In practice, this means:

• Digital games cannot be transferred to another PSN account
• The game library cannot be inherited as an asset
• When the account is closed, access to those games ends permanently
• There is no mechanism to convert a digital licence into a physical copy

For estate valuation purposes, the digital library has no realisable cash value – it cannot be sold, transferred, or exchanged. Executors should note this when considering the estate’s digital assets.

However, there is an important practical exception worth knowing about: on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, games purchased on an account are typically playable on the console where that account is set as the “primary console” – by anyone using that console, not just the account holder. If a family member lives in the same household and uses the same console, they may still be able to access the deceased’s purchased games on that device even after the account is closed, provided the console’s primary account settings are not changed.

Before closing the account, check whether anyone in the household relies on the library and whether the primary console setting is relevant to them.

If you feel the digital library represents genuine financial loss to the estate, it is worth raising this with PlayStation support when requesting closure. Sony may offer a goodwill gesture in exceptional circumstances, though this is not guaranteed and not part of any published policy.

Other Sony services on the same account

A PlayStation Network account is part of a broader Sony account. Depending on what the deceased used, the same login may also cover:

• PlayStation Video – Sony’s digital film and TV purchase service. Films and series purchased here are tied to the account in the same way as games: they are personal licences and cannot be transferred. If there is a purchase history, check the account before closure.
• Sony account profile data – Sony’s account system spans entertainment products (including Bravia TVs, Xperia phones, and audio products), all under the same Sony login. Account closure may affect access to any associated Sony product registrations or warranty records, though these have limited estate significance.
• PS Stars – PlayStation’s loyalty programme, which awards points for purchases and trophies. Points cannot be transferred or redeemed for cash.

When you speak to PlayStation support about account closure, ask them to confirm which services are linked to the account so nothing is overlooked.

Physical hardware and game discs

The PlayStation console itself is personal property – a physical asset of the estate. It can be sold, gifted, or kept by the family in the same way as any other household item.

Physical game discs are also personal property. They work independently of the PSN account: you do not need to be logged in to play a disc game on a PlayStation console. Disc games can be kept, sold, or donated.

The distinction between physical and digital matters here in a straightforward way: physical copies are inheritable, tradeable, and can be sold on. Digital purchases are not. If the deceased had a mix of disc and digital games, the disc games retain resale value; the digital ones do not.

Two-step verification – a common barrier

Two-step verification (also called 2-step verification or 2SV) is a security feature that sends a one-time code to a phone or email when someone signs in. Sony encourages all account holders to enable it, and many do.

If the deceased had two-step verification enabled and you do not have access to the linked phone or email address, you will be unable to sign in using just the email and password. This blocks the standard self-service routes.

The route around this is to contact Sony directly. PlayStation support can process account closure and subscription cancellation requests without requiring you to bypass 2SV – they have internal processes for deceased account situations that operate outside the normal login flow.

When you call 0203 538 2665, explain upfront that:

• You are acting on behalf of a deceased person’s estate
• You cannot access the account due to two-step verification
• You have the death certificate and your own identity documents ready

Sony will guide you through what they need. At minimum, expect to provide the sign-in ID (email address), the Online ID, and proof that the account holder has died. They may ask for additional verification of your authority to act.

Do not attempt to bypass two-step verification through unofficial means – this could be treated as unauthorised access to a computer system under UK law.

Account closure process

Closing a PlayStation account is a permanent action. Sony’s terms make clear that once an account is closed, “you will not be able to access the PlayStation Online Services or use the Digital Products purchased with that Account.” All associated data is deleted.

Before requesting closure, work through this checklist:

• Check the PSN wallet balance and, if possible, use or request a refund of any remaining credit
• Cancel the PS Plus subscription to stop billing
• Check whether any family member relies on the primary console access to digital games
• Note the game library and any PlayStation Video purchases for estate records
• Sign out of any devices using the account (if you have access): Settings → Account Management → Sign Out of All Devices

To request closure, contact PlayStation support with:

PlayStation support will process the closure request and confirm when it is complete.

Xbox and Nintendo

If the deceased also had gaming accounts with other platforms, the process is broadly similar – digital libraries are non-transferable across the industry.

For Microsoft / Xbox accounts, the Microsoft Next of Kin procedure covers Xbox Game Pass, Xbox Live subscriptions, and any digital game library. Microsoft’s process is handled via their support portal and typically takes four to six weeks. See our guide to notifying Microsoft when someone dies.

Nintendo accounts (for Switch) follow a similar pattern: digital games are tied to the Nintendo Account and cannot be transferred, and eShop funds may qualify for a goodwill refund on death. See our guide to closing a Nintendo account when someone dies for the full process, including Family Group implications and how to back up save data before closing the account.

Summary and checklist

Managing a PlayStation account after a bereavement involves several overlapping tasks. The most time-sensitive is stopping the PS Plus subscription – billing continues until you act. The PSN wallet balance is the item most likely to be overlooked, and it is worth a direct conversation with Sony support at the point of closure.

PlayStation support:

• Phone: 0203 538 2665 (Monday–Saturday, 10:30am–7:30pm)
• Online: playstation.com/en-gb/support
• Twitter / X: @AskPS_UK (daily, 9am–11pm)

For an overview of all the digital accounts and subscriptions to deal with after a bereavement, see the complete guide to what to do when someone dies. For a broader look at how digital purchases and libraries are treated in UK estates, see our guide to what happens to digital assets when someone dies. If the deceased had multiple subscription services, our guide to what happens to subscriptions when someone dies walks through the full picture.