When a loved one dies, it can be very overwhelming. There are many things to do, but knowing where to start can be confusing. Besides informing friends and family, there are also organizations you may need to notify. In addition, you need to check whether there’s a will or the deceased has compared funeral plans and paid for their funeral in advance.
Working out what you need to do as soon as possible and in the following weeks and months should make things much easier and less stressful.
What You Need to do Immediately After a Death
You must do several things as soon as possible after a loved one has died. You must obtain a medical certificate, register their death, and arrange the funeral.
Dealing with their will, property, and money doesn’t have to be dealt with immediately.
Getting a Medical Certificate
A medical certificate is used immediately after a person dies unless there’s a coroner’s inquest. The hospital issues a medical certificate if the person dies in the hospital. You must ask their GP for the medical certificate if they died at home.
There is no charge for a medical certificate.
Registering the Death
A person’s death must be registered within five days in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, the limit is eight days.
If there is a coroner’s inquest, registering the death will be delayed until the inquest’s conclusion.
Where you register the death depends on the country where the deceased lived. You must contact the following offices:
- England and Wales: You must contact the nearest Register Office
- Northern Ireland: You must contact your local District Registration Office
- Scotland: You must contact your local Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages
There is no cost for registering a person’s death. However, you do have to pay for a death certificate:
- £11 in England and Wales
- £12 in Scotland
- £15 in Northern Ireland
You will also need several copies, for which there is an additional charge. Getting several copies is a good idea because the organisations you contact about the person’s death will want a copy. It speeds up the notification process because you don’t have to wait for your only copy to be returned.
When you register a death, you have to provide the following information:
- The person’s full name, including any previous names
- Date and place of birth
- Last address
- Occupation
- Details of their surviving/late spouse or civil partner if they were married
- Medical certificate stating the cause of death
In addition, you should also provide the following if possible:
- Birth certificate
- Marriage or civil partnership certificate
- National Insurance number
- NHS medical card
- Proof of address, for example, a utility bill
- Driving licence
- Passport
Arranging the Funeral
Once you’ve registered your loved one’s death, you can start arranging their funeral. Typically, people choose to do this with the help of a funeral director. However, you can arrange it yourself, if you prefer.
In the Weeks Following the Death
After taking all the steps above, you must start notifying various organisations about your loved one’s death.
Who You Must Notify
As soon as possible, you must notify the following:
- The person’s landlord
- Council housing or housing association offices
- Employers
- Mortgage providers
- Utility companies
Several government departments must also be notified. For example:
- HMRC: For their taxes
- Passport Office: To cancel their passport
- DVLA: To cancel their driving licence, car registration documents, and car tax
- Department for Work and Pensions (DWP): To stop their benefits and State Pension
- Local council: For their Council Tax, housing benefits, and electoral register
- Armed forces or public sector pension schemes for their pension
Notifying all these different departments is easy to do. You use the Tell Us Once service. Most local authorities in England, Scotland, and Wales offer this service, but it is unavailable in Northern Ireland. You must notify each department separately if this service is not on offer.
It costs nothing to inform the different organisations.
You must provide various information when notifying organisations of a person’s death.
- Name, date of death, and National Insurance number
- Reference number you received when you registered the death
- Contact details, date of birth, passport number, and National Insurance number of the deceased’s next of kin
- Details of the person dealing with the deceased’s estate
- Permission from the various people listed above to give out their contact details
If possible, you should also provide:
- Next of kin’s name and address
- Details of any entitlements or benefits the deceased was receiving
- Details of any local council services they were getting
- Name and contact details of the executor or administrator
- Details of any pension schemes they were paying into or getting
Return Their Driving Licence and Passport
Once you’ve received the death certificate, you should return your loved one’s driving licence and passport. This can be done by post.
Notify Creditors and Insurers
Finally, you should notify the following creditors and insurers:
- Bank or building society
- Insurance company
- Utility companies
- Credit card companies
- Pension provider
- Any other companies that owed money to the deceased or were owed money by them
It’s completely free to notify these companies, but the person who died may owe them money which will need to be settled.
