diff --git a/lib/components/user-identity-cache.react.js b/lib/components/user-identity-cache.react.js
--- a/lib/components/user-identity-cache.react.js
+++ b/lib/components/user-identity-cache.react.js
@@ -8,16 +8,16 @@
   UserIdentitiesResponse,
   Identity,
 } from '../types/identity-service-types.js';
+import { identityServiceQueryTimeout } from '../utils/identity-service.js';
 import sleep from '../utils/sleep.js';
 
 const cacheTimeout = 24 * 60 * 60 * 1000; // one day
 // If the query fails due to a timeout, we don't cache it
 // This forces a retry on the next request
 const failedQueryCacheTimeout = 0;
-const queryTimeout = 20 * 1000; // twenty seconds
 
 async function throwOnTimeout(identifier: string) {
-  await sleep(queryTimeout);
+  await sleep(identityServiceQueryTimeout);
   throw new Error(`User identity fetch for ${identifier} timed out`);
 }
 
@@ -189,7 +189,7 @@
         })();
         cache.set(userID, {
           userID,
-          expirationTime: Date.now() + queryTimeout * 2,
+          expirationTime: Date.now() + identityServiceQueryTimeout * 2,
           result: fetchUserIdentityPromise,
         });
       }
diff --git a/lib/handlers/user-infos-handler.react.js b/lib/handlers/user-infos-handler.react.js
--- a/lib/handlers/user-infos-handler.react.js
+++ b/lib/handlers/user-infos-handler.react.js
@@ -168,7 +168,10 @@
           usersWithMissingDeviceList,
           true,
         );
-        Object.keys(foundDeviceListIDs).forEach(id =>
+        const deviceListIDsToRemove = foundDeviceListIDs
+          ? Object.keys(foundDeviceListIDs)
+          : usersWithMissingDeviceList;
+        deviceListIDsToRemove.forEach(id =>
           requestedDeviceListsIDsRef.current.delete(id),
         );
       } catch (e) {
diff --git a/lib/hooks/peer-list-hooks.js b/lib/hooks/peer-list-hooks.js
--- a/lib/hooks/peer-list-hooks.js
+++ b/lib/hooks/peer-list-hooks.js
@@ -28,8 +28,10 @@
 import { getConfig } from '../utils/config.js';
 import { getContentSigningKey } from '../utils/crypto-utils.js';
 import { convertSignedDeviceListsToRawDeviceLists } from '../utils/device-list-utils.js';
+import { identityServiceQueryTimeout } from '../utils/identity-service.js';
 import { values } from '../utils/objects.js';
 import { useDispatch, useSelector } from '../utils/redux-utils.js';
+import sleep from '../utils/sleep.js';
 
 function useGetDeviceListsForUsers(): (
   userIDs: $ReadOnlyArray<string>,
@@ -55,10 +57,15 @@
   );
 }
 
+async function throwOnTimeout(userIDs: $ReadOnlyArray<string>) {
+  await sleep(identityServiceQueryTimeout);
+  throw new Error(`Device list fetch for ${JSON.stringify(userIDs)} timed out`);
+}
+
 function useGetAndUpdateDeviceListsForUsers(): (
   userIDs: $ReadOnlyArray<string>,
   broadcastUpdates: ?boolean,
-) => Promise<UsersRawDeviceLists> {
+) => Promise<?UsersRawDeviceLists> {
   const getDeviceListsForUsers = useGetDeviceListsForUsers();
   const dispatch = useDispatch();
   const broadcastDeviceListUpdates = useBroadcastDeviceListUpdates();
@@ -67,8 +74,21 @@
 
   return React.useCallback(
     async (userIDs: $ReadOnlyArray<string>, broadcastUpdates: ?boolean) => {
-      const { deviceLists, usersPlatformDetails } =
-        await getDeviceListsForUsers(userIDs);
+      let result;
+      try {
+        result = await Promise.race([
+          getDeviceListsForUsers(userIDs),
+          throwOnTimeout(userIDs),
+        ]);
+      } catch (e) {
+        console.log(e);
+      }
+
+      if (!result) {
+        return null;
+      }
+
+      const { deviceLists, usersPlatformDetails } = result;
       if (Object.keys(deviceLists).length === 0) {
         return {};
       }
diff --git a/lib/shared/dm-ops/dm-op-utils.js b/lib/shared/dm-ops/dm-op-utils.js
--- a/lib/shared/dm-ops/dm-op-utils.js
+++ b/lib/shared/dm-ops/dm-op-utils.js
@@ -172,6 +172,10 @@
         true,
       );
 
+      if (!deviceLists) {
+        return [];
+      }
+
       const missingUsers: $ReadOnlyArray<string> =
         missingDeviceListsUserIDs.filter(id => !deviceLists[id]);
       const time = Date.now();
diff --git a/lib/utils/identity-service.js b/lib/utils/identity-service.js
--- a/lib/utils/identity-service.js
+++ b/lib/utils/identity-service.js
@@ -45,4 +45,6 @@
   return `${identityServiceConfig.defaultHttpURL}${path}`;
 }
 
-export { getInboundKeysForDeviceURL };
+const identityServiceQueryTimeout = 20 * 1000; // twenty seconds
+
+export { getInboundKeysForDeviceURL, identityServiceQueryTimeout };