Question about Outlook Express

I want to permanently close my personal Microsoft account but trying to do so has proved to be quite a nuisance. I've come across some threads on here and see that many other people seem to be having the same problem. Let me explain my issue... When I try to deactivate my account, it gives me the following two messages: 1) "You need to cancel any paid services or Microsoft Points accounts associated with your Microsoft account" (I've got none) 2) You need to deactivate your Hotmail account. Once you've done that, your Microsoft account will be closed automatically after a period of inactivity". So, I proceed to try and deactivate my Hotmail account, so I can in turn close my Microsoft account, but then I get another error message that reads as follows "To close your Hotmail account, you must first cancel your billing service. Go to Microsoft Account and Billing Services". This is a free, personal account, so this shouldn't be an issue. So, I'm back to square one and it seems as though I'm running in circles trying to do something that should really be as easy as clicking a button. If you could help me deactivate my account it would be greatly appreciated, as my fuse is running short trying to figure it out.

Thank you.