diff --git a/app/Http/Controllers/PublicApiController.php b/app/Http/Controllers/PublicApiController.php
index ab8540282..221fe2ddb 100644
--- a/app/Http/Controllers/PublicApiController.php
+++ b/app/Http/Controllers/PublicApiController.php
@@ -478,7 +478,7 @@ class PublicApiController extends Controller
                     return $status;
                 })
                 ->filter(function ($s) use ($filtered) {
-                    return $s && in_array($s['account']['id'], $filtered) == false;
+                    return $s && isset($s['account']) && in_array($s['account']['id'], $filtered) == false;
                 })
                 ->values()
                 ->toArray();
@@ -527,7 +527,7 @@ class PublicApiController extends Controller
                     return $status;
                 })
                 ->filter(function ($s) use ($filtered) {
-                    return $s && in_array($s['account']['id'], $filtered) == false;
+                    return $s && isset($s['account']) && in_array($s['account']['id'], $filtered) == false;
                 })
                 ->values()
                 ->toArray();
diff --git a/tests/Feature/Api/HomeTimelineNullAccountTest.php b/tests/Feature/Api/HomeTimelineNullAccountTest.php
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..2a0fe8e6f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/Feature/Api/HomeTimelineNullAccountTest.php
@@ -0,0 +1,119 @@
+<?php
+
+use App\Models\Follower;
+use App\Models\Status;
+use App\Models\User;
+use App\Services\AccountService;
+use App\Services\StatusService;
+use Illuminate\Foundation\Testing\LazilyRefreshDatabase;
+use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Redis;
+
+uses(LazilyRefreshDatabase::class);
+
+/*
+|--------------------------------------------------------------------------
+| GET /api/pixelfed/v1/timelines/home null-account filtering
+|--------------------------------------------------------------------------
+|
+| The home timeline transforms each followed status via StatusService::get,
+| which returns account=null once the author profile is deleted. The filter
+| callback must drop those instead of dereferencing $s['account']['id'] (which
+| in PHP 8 throws "Trying to access array offset on null" -> HTTP 500), matching
+| every other timeline filter in the controller.
+|
+*/
+
+beforeEach(function () {
+    Redis::spy();
+});
+
+/**
+ * Make $viewer follow $author.
+ */
+function follow(int $viewerPid, int $authorPid): void
+{
+    $f = new Follower;
+    $f->profile_id = $viewerPid;
+    $f->following_id = $authorPid;
+    $f->save();
+}
+
+function homeStatus(int $authorPid): Status
+{
+    return Status::factory()->create([
+        'profile_id' => $authorPid,
+        'type' => 'photo',
+        'scope' => 'public',
+        'visibility' => 'public',
+    ]);
+}
+
+it('returns 200 and drops a followed status whose author was deleted', function () {
+    $viewer = User::factory()->create();
+    $viewer->refresh();
+
+    $liveAuthor = User::factory()->create();
+    $liveAuthor->refresh();
+    $deletedAuthor = User::factory()->create();
+    $deletedAuthor->refresh();
+
+    follow($viewer->profile_id, $liveAuthor->profile_id);
+    follow($viewer->profile_id, $deletedAuthor->profile_id);
+
+    $liveStatus = homeStatus($liveAuthor->profile_id);
+    $deletedStatus = homeStatus($deletedAuthor->profile_id);
+
+    // Warm the status cache while both authors resolve.
+    StatusService::get($liveStatus->id, false);
+    StatusService::get($deletedStatus->id, false);
+
+    // Delete the second author's profile so AccountService::get() returns null,
+    // making StatusService::get() return account=null for its status.
+    $deletedAuthor->profile->status = 'delete';
+    $deletedAuthor->profile->save();
+    AccountService::del($deletedAuthor->profile_id);
+    StatusService::del($deletedStatus->id);
+
+    $res = $this->actingAs($viewer)
+        ->getJson('/api/pixelfed/v1/timelines/home?limit=40')
+        ->assertOk()
+        ->json();
+
+    $ids = collect($res)->pluck('id')->map(fn ($id) => (string) $id)->all();
+
+    // No entry has a null account.
+    foreach ($res as $entry) {
+        expect($entry['account'] ?? null)->not->toBeNull();
+    }
+
+    // The deleted-author status is filtered out; the live one remains.
+    expect($ids)->not->toContain((string) $deletedStatus->id);
+    expect($ids)->toContain((string) $liveStatus->id);
+});
+
+it('returns 200 for the min_id/max_id branch when an author was deleted', function () {
+    $viewer = User::factory()->create();
+    $viewer->refresh();
+
+    $deletedAuthor = User::factory()->create();
+    $deletedAuthor->refresh();
+
+    follow($viewer->profile_id, $deletedAuthor->profile_id);
+
+    $deletedStatus = homeStatus($deletedAuthor->profile_id);
+    StatusService::get($deletedStatus->id, false);
+
+    $deletedAuthor->profile->status = 'delete';
+    $deletedAuthor->profile->save();
+    AccountService::del($deletedAuthor->profile_id);
+    StatusService::del($deletedStatus->id);
+
+    // max_id exercises the ($min || $max) branch (the other filter callback).
+    $res = $this->actingAs($viewer)
+        ->getJson('/api/pixelfed/v1/timelines/home?limit=40&max_id='.($deletedStatus->id + 1))
+        ->assertOk()
+        ->json();
+
+    $ids = collect($res)->pluck('id')->map(fn ($id) => (string) $id)->all();
+    expect($ids)->not->toContain((string) $deletedStatus->id);
+});