diff --git a/lib/_http_client.js b/lib/_http_client.js
index de7b01cbd1b9bd..98b1de374f4bf8 100644
--- a/lib/_http_client.js
+++ b/lib/_http_client.js
@@ -363,7 +363,7 @@ function socketCloseListener() {
       res.emit('close');
     }
   } else {
-    if (!req.socket._hadError) {
+    if (parser && !req.socket._hadError) {
       // This socket error fired before we started to
       // receive a response. The error needs to
       // fire on the request.
@@ -424,7 +424,7 @@ function socketOnEnd() {
   var req = this._httpMessage;
   var parser = this.parser;
 
-  if (!req.res && !req.socket._hadError) {
+  if (parser && !req.res && !req.socket._hadError) {
     // If we don't have a response then we know that the socket
     // ended prematurely and we need to emit an error on the request.
     req.socket._hadError = true;
@@ -442,57 +442,59 @@ function socketOnData(d) {
   var req = this._httpMessage;
   var parser = this.parser;
 
-  assert(parser && parser.socket === socket);
-
-  var ret = parser.execute(d);
-  if (ret instanceof Error) {
-    debug('parse error', ret);
-    freeParser(parser, req, socket);
-    socket.destroy();
-    req.socket._hadError = true;
-    req.emit('error', ret);
-  } else if (parser.incoming && parser.incoming.upgrade) {
-    // Upgrade (if status code 101) or CONNECT
-    var bytesParsed = ret;
-    var res = parser.incoming;
-    req.res = res;
-
-    socket.removeListener('data', socketOnData);
-    socket.removeListener('end', socketOnEnd);
-    socket.removeListener('drain', ondrain);
-    parser.finish();
-    freeParser(parser, req, socket);
-
-    var bodyHead = d.slice(bytesParsed, d.length);
-
-    var eventName = req.method === 'CONNECT' ? 'connect' : 'upgrade';
-    if (req.listenerCount(eventName) > 0) {
-      req.upgradeOrConnect = true;
-
-      // detach the socket
-      socket.emit('agentRemove');
-      socket.removeListener('close', socketCloseListener);
-      socket.removeListener('error', socketErrorListener);
-
-      socket._httpMessage = null;
-      socket.readableFlowing = null;
+  if (parser) {
+    assert(parser.socket === socket);
 
-      req.emit(eventName, res, socket, bodyHead);
-      req.emit('close');
-    } else {
-      // Requested Upgrade or used CONNECT method, but have no handler.
+    var ret = parser.execute(d);
+    if (ret instanceof Error) {
+      debug('parse error', ret);
+      freeParser(parser, req, socket);
       socket.destroy();
+      req.socket._hadError = true;
+      req.emit('error', ret);
+    } else if (parser.incoming && parser.incoming.upgrade) {
+      // Upgrade (if status code 101) or CONNECT
+      var bytesParsed = ret;
+      var res = parser.incoming;
+      req.res = res;
+
+      socket.removeListener('data', socketOnData);
+      socket.removeListener('end', socketOnEnd);
+      socket.removeListener('drain', ondrain);
+      parser.finish();
+      freeParser(parser, req, socket);
+
+      var bodyHead = d.slice(bytesParsed, d.length);
+
+      var eventName = req.method === 'CONNECT' ? 'connect' : 'upgrade';
+      if (req.listenerCount(eventName) > 0) {
+        req.upgradeOrConnect = true;
+
+        // detach the socket
+        socket.emit('agentRemove');
+        socket.removeListener('close', socketCloseListener);
+        socket.removeListener('error', socketErrorListener);
+
+        socket._httpMessage = null;
+        socket.readableFlowing = null;
+
+        req.emit(eventName, res, socket, bodyHead);
+        req.emit('close');
+      } else {
+        // Requested Upgrade or used CONNECT method, but have no handler.
+        socket.destroy();
+      }
+    } else if (parser.incoming && parser.incoming.complete &&
+      // When the status code is informational (100, 102-199),
+      // the server will send a final response after this client
+      // sends a request body, so we must not free the parser.
+      // 101 (Switching Protocols) and all other status codes
+      // should be processed normally.
+      !statusIsInformational(parser.incoming.statusCode)) {
+      socket.removeListener('data', socketOnData);
+      socket.removeListener('end', socketOnEnd);
+      freeParser(parser, req, socket);
     }
-  } else if (parser.incoming && parser.incoming.complete &&
-             // When the status code is informational (100, 102-199),
-             // the server will send a final response after this client
-             // sends a request body, so we must not free the parser.
-             // 101 (Switching Protocols) and all other status codes
-             // should be processed normally.
-             !statusIsInformational(parser.incoming.statusCode)) {
-    socket.removeListener('data', socketOnData);
-    socket.removeListener('end', socketOnEnd);
-    freeParser(parser, req, socket);
   }
 }
 
@@ -628,38 +630,41 @@ function emitFreeNT(socket) {
 
 function tickOnSocket(req, socket) {
   var parser = parsers.alloc();
-  req.socket = socket;
-  req.connection = socket;
-  parser.reinitialize(HTTPParser.RESPONSE, parser[is_reused_symbol]);
-  parser.socket = socket;
-  parser.outgoing = req;
-  req.parser = parser;
-
-  socket.parser = parser;
-  socket._httpMessage = req;
-
-  // Setup "drain" propagation.
-  httpSocketSetup(socket);
-
-  // Propagate headers limit from request object to parser
-  if (typeof req.maxHeadersCount === 'number') {
-    parser.maxHeaderPairs = req.maxHeadersCount << 1;
-  }
-
-  parser.onIncoming = parserOnIncomingClient;
-  socket.removeListener('error', freeSocketErrorListener);
-  socket.on('error', socketErrorListener);
-  socket.on('data', socketOnData);
-  socket.on('end', socketOnEnd);
-  socket.on('close', socketCloseListener);
-
-  if (
-    req.timeout !== undefined ||
-    (req.agent && req.agent.options && req.agent.options.timeout)
-  ) {
-    listenSocketTimeout(req);
-  }
-  req.emit('socket', socket);
+  if (parser) {
+    req.socket = socket;
+    req.connection = socket;
+    parser.reinitialize(HTTPParser.RESPONSE, parser[is_reused_symbol]);
+    parser.socket = socket;
+    parser.outgoing = req;
+
+    req.parser = parser;
+
+    socket.parser = parser;
+    socket._httpMessage = req;
+
+    // Setup "drain" propagation.
+    httpSocketSetup(socket);
+
+    // Propagate headers limit from request object to parser
+    if (typeof req.maxHeadersCount === 'number') {
+      parser.maxHeaderPairs = req.maxHeadersCount << 1;
+    }
+
+    parser.onIncoming = parserOnIncomingClient;
+    socket.removeListener('error', freeSocketErrorListener);
+    socket.on('error', socketErrorListener);
+    socket.on('data', socketOnData);
+    socket.on('end', socketOnEnd);
+    socket.on('close', socketCloseListener);
+
+    if (
+      req.timeout !== undefined ||
+      (req.agent && req.agent.options && req.agent.options.timeout)
+    ) {
+      listenSocketTimeout(req);
+    }
+    req.emit('socket', socket);
+  }
 }
 
 function listenSocketTimeout(req) {
diff --git a/test/parallel/test-http-client-delete-parser.js b/test/parallel/test-http-client-delete-parser.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000000..bac988853a8b38
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/parallel/test-http-client-delete-parser.js
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+'use strict';
+
+const common = require('../common');
+
+const http = require('http');
+
+const server = http.createServer(common.mustCall((req, res) => {
+  res.writeHead(200, { 'Content-Type': 'text/plain' });
+  res.write('okay', common.mustCall(() => {
+    delete req.socket.parser;
+  }));
+  res.end();
+}));
+
+server.listen(1337, '127.0.0.1');
+server.unref();
+
+const req = http.request({
+  port: 1337,
+  host: '127.0.0.1',
+  method: 'GET',
+});
+
+req.end();