Problem updating email on Xbox Live account

When my son first got an Xbox live account, he was not using email. I created an email account for him that was basically only ever used to log in to Xbox live. Now he is older and has an email account that is different from the one associated with his
Xbox live account. In fact, we no longer have access to the old email account.

He has an Xbox 360 and I just purchased an Xbox One. I noticed the email was incorrect when I added his profile to my Xbox One. I then went into his billing info and updated the email and phone number associated with his Xbox live account. However, it
still requires his old email to log in and to manage his account on a PC. ALL I WANT TO DO IS REMOVE THE OLD EMAIL ADDRESS FROM HIS XBOX LIVE ACCOUNT AND MAKE HIS NEW EMAIL ADDRESS HIS PRIMARY ALIAS AND THE ONLY EMAIL ASSOCIATED WITH HIS ACCOUNT. After 2
days and several hours on chat and phone with support, nobody can seem to help me. This is beyond the point of ridiculousness. I don't have this issue with credit card and bank accounts when changing an email address.

To top it off, if I try to go in to his account and try to update the alias, it says that for security reasons, it needs to send a verification code. It then gives me 2 options in the pull down menu. 1) shows the old email address. Again, that won't work
because we can't access that email anymore. 2) says "I don't have these accounts anymore" When I click option 2 it tells me it can send the verification code to another email address. Ok fine... The catch is that it has to be an email that is NOT associated
with his account in any way. Maybe it's just me but that seems excessively stupid and insecure. Why would it require any random email address that is not already associated with the account? So if someone gets into my account they can send the verification
code to their email address and then gain access to everything in my account?

Talking in chat and on the phone with Xbox live support gets me nowhere. None of them are able to manually change the email address and update the account. Their best answer was "We can submit the issue to the customer advocacy review team. That process
takes about 2 days and they will email a verification code to the new email in my son's billing info. Then once verified, he needs to create a new Xbox live account so they can migrate his information from the existing account to the new one."

Really?!?!?!?! I have to go through all that to change an email address? Are you kidding me? If I have to do that much work, I'm seriously considering returning my Xbox One and going PS4. I kept apologizing to the rep on the phone support line because
he was trying to be helpful and I told him I know it's not his fault, but I am beyond frustrated right now. Is it really that difficult to change an email address or can anyone help me?

:)

 

One year anniversary of the one - thanks message from xbox

I am sure whatever they give will be linked to the Xbox account message system.

I had that problem with using an old email. I switched the email through windows live. It took like 30 days to do that though. At least I get the emails now.

 

xbox live gold not working

Your best bet is to do as Gift3d suggested and call Xbox support. It is possible that your payment didn't clear. You might also want to check your email account that you have associated with your Live account. Most times if there is a problem, Microsoft will email you about it.

 

I'm going through the same thing. been about six months of back and forth. One of the crazy rules is when you create a new email address, there is a 30 day waiting period before that email is "ready to be used". So I suggest you setup as many "temp" emails
as you can so the clock can start ticking on those. Keep it simple, like *** Die E-Mail-Adresse wurde aus Datenschutzgründen entfernt. ***, *** Die E-Mail-Adresse wurde aus Datenschutzgründen entfernt. ***, etc. I created seven so if something went wrong I had others in my list to go to. It's crazy, I don't think the waiting period on guns is this long. Changing
emails with my banks or credit card companies is easier and quick. I just finished another chat, and was given the same answer as you, The Advocacy Team will contact you in 2 business days. That's the 1st time I've ever heard on that team, why didn't someone
else push it to them from the start. They have a great product, just lousy service protocols. I would keep your unit, don't switch quality. If you just got it, ask about resetting the whole unit back to factory and deleting the email account linked to it
or creating a new Microsoft Account end in @live.com or @outlook,com. They are eventually going to migrate to @outlook.com so it's a good idea to secure your email with that extension anyway. Hang in there, I'm just as frustrated. I'm a repair tech, so
it really gets under my skin. Mark.

 

@DJMarkv00

i am going through the same fiasco as well. what constitutes "changes to the account" that resets the clock on the email? purchases for XBL? or changes in billing info? I really don't want to have to not touch my xbox for 30 days but I am seriously considering
it after the hassle I ( and many others ) have put up with. BTW I created this account today on xbox.com thinking the "new email" had to be linking with xbox.com before the account can be switched (just trying anything and everything at this point). but alas
it didn't work. looks like i set the clock back on myself again. lol

 

I have the same issue as well. I do not have access to my original email address I used when I signed up for Xbox live. I have gone through all the steps with Microsoft, even having my issue "escalated" which ended up being a complete waste of time as
well. I don't understand why this has to be so difficult. I can give Microsoft my gamertag, name, credit card number, original email address and any other information attached to that gamertag, but apparently changing your e-mail address associated with
your account will cause Microsoft's entire network to crash and bankrupt them. I have been very disappointed with this entire experience. All I have been able to do is create a new account which resets everything back to "zero" so to speak. I have considered
buying an Xbox One, but I am not so sure at this point.

 

Hello, and so sorry for the inconvenience!

Have you tried setting up a new Microsoft Account with your son's new email and switching his gamertag to this account online? Here's a link to a guide showing how to do this step-by-step:

support.xbox.com/.../switch-gamertag-to-different-microsoft-account

 

WonderSquid - I have not tried that. I couldn't find that page in my researching and over the multiple hours in chat and on the phone with support, no one has recommended that. Am I correct in understanding that if I go through the process outlined in
the link you posted, that by creating a new account, I can instantly "merge" or bring over his gamertag and Gamerscore and friends and he won't lose anything? If that is correct, I may eventually go that route, but I don't want to mess with it or do anything
until I hear from this customer advocacy review team. I don't want to screw anything up until I know if/what actions they take. Still seems like a lot of excessive work to change an email address.

One phone rep did recommend creating a new account, but had told me that was in conjunction with getting the customer advocacy review team involved and they would need a new account to merge my son's gamertag and other info into, after they reviewed the
issue for a couple days. It was not presented as something I could do fairly easily myself. Have you actually done this process? If so, how did it work? I don't want the 30 day wait time thing to kick in at all because a phone rep told me that during that
30 day wait my son would not be able to use his account on his Xbox 360 OR on my Xbox One. That is unacceptable.

 

I actually have done this, and I did not lose my gamertag, gamerscore, etc. This process should not involve you losing any info, and should be a seamless joining of a new Microsoft account and your current Xbox Live profile. Although I completely agree
it seems like am arbitrary process, it is a relatively simple affair. So, once you hear back from this advocacy team and if they are unable to help you (which I sincerely hope is not the case, but it seems like the norm for you haha) I would advise giving
this a try. Please let me know what happens!

 

Ok, my son finally got an email from this "customer advocacy review team" instructing us to to go verify.microsoft.com and then follow the steps from there. The problem is once you enter the information on the first step to verify, it gives you a code.
Nowhere in the emailed instructions does it say where to enter the code AND once you get the code, NOWHERE on the page does it have anything even slightly resembling the instructions in the next step of the emailed directions. COMPLETE FAIL!!! AND to top
it off, my son can't sign into live anymore on his 360.

So against my better judgement, I called back to the support line. The woman, who to be fair was really trying to help, said she has run into this several times and the only way she could figure to fix it was to have my son create another Microsoft account
and then migrate the gamertag over. I REALLY did NOT want to do this. Why create yet another email address that my son will never use? That is how we got into this problem to begin with. But I did. However, that will not work either. The new outlook email
address is not receiving the verification code that live supposedly emailed to it. It will not allow me to add his correct email as the primary alias either, even though it sends a verification code to that email.

THIS IS LITERALLY THE STUPIDEST, MOST RIDICULOUS HASSLE. I CAN'T EVEN CALCULATE THE NUMBER OF HOURS I HAVE WASTED TRYING TO GET THIS SEEMINGLY SIMPLE TASK RESOLVED. APPARENTLY, CHANGING YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IS TANTAMOUNT TO PUTTING SOMEONE ON THE MOON.

NOTE TO MICROSOFT: THE PRIMARY ALIAS EMAIL ACCOUNT THAT IS ATTACHED TO HIS XBOX LIVE ACCOUNT IS NO LONGER HIS EMAIL. I DON'T WANT THAT EMAIL ATTACHED TO HIS ACCOUNT ANYMORE. HOW EFFING HARD CAN IT BE??????

Wondersquid - I'm going to try the link you sent me and see if I can get that to work. I should have probably tried that before calling support again. We'll see how that goes.

 

I have been trying to transfer my son's gamer tag to a new account and have followed the link that wondersquid posted, but I keep getting an error message on the xbox stating "Sorry, we can't change your Microsoft account right now. For more info, go to
Xbox.com/AccountSwap."

I have been at this for hours and I am very frustrated.