What to do after someone dies

If your relative or friend dies at home, you may be alone with them. You may not be certain that they have died, and you may be unsure what to do next.

You may find it difficult to think clearly at first. If you have written information about what to do next, try to follow that. If you are on your own, you may want to ask a family member or friend to be with you.

Reporting the death

You will need to tell the person’s GP or district nurse what has happened. They will come as soon as they can to confirm the death. If the GP surgery is shut, call the out-of-hours doctor or 111.

If the death is expected, the person’s GP will confirm the death and write a medical certificate of cause of death (MCCD). The GP usually emails the MCCD form to the registrar.

They will give you the registrar’s phone number so you can make an appointment to register the death.

If you call a district nurse or out-of-hours doctor, they will come and confirm the death. But only a GP who has seen the person alive in the last 28 days can complete the MCCD.

If the GP has not seen the person in the last 28 days, they will need to discuss their medical case with the coroner’s office before they can fill in the MCCD from. This is true even if the person had a terminal illness and their death was expected. This may take a few days. You can call the GP surgery to find out when the forms have been sent to the registrar.

When a nurse or doctor has confirmed the death, you can contact a funeral director (undertaker). You do not need to do this straight away if you would like to spend some time with your relative or friend. Funeral directors are available 24 hours a day. They will explain what you need to do.

When the registrar gives you the death certificate, it can be a shock to see the details in writing. Some people feel as if they are being told all over again that their relative or friend has died. You may want to have someone with you when you read it.

If you have questions about what is written on the MCCD, you can ask your GP to explain it.

Medical examiner

If you live in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, a medical examiner will review the MCCD before the GP gives it to you. The medical examiner can also speak to you about any questions or concerns you may have. Your doctor can tell you more about this.

If you live in Scotland, the system is different. Not all MCCDs are reviewed. If you have any questions about this, you can ask your doctor.

If your relative or friend dies unexpectedly, you may be totally unprepared. You may find it difficult to believe what has happened. The ward staff or GP will talk to you about what has happened and try to answer any questions you have.

If the death was not expected, or if the person dies at home and had not been seen by their GP in the last 28 days, the death will be referred to a doctor or lawyer who investigates unexpected deaths. This person is called a:

• coroner, in England, Wales or Northern Ireland
• procurator fiscal, in Scotland.

This is a standard procedure. When someone dies unexpectedly, the police may also do a routine visit.

Most deaths that are referred to the coroner or procurator fiscal are natural. Sometimes the cause of death is not clear. The coroner will decide if an examination of the body is needed to find the cause of death – this is called a post-mortem. If a death is referred to the coroner or procurator fiscal, the funeral may sometimes be delayed. You can ask them how long they think it may take.

If there are any cultural or religious concerns about a post-mortem, you should discuss this with the coroner or procurator fiscal.

You can find more information about what to do after a death at:

• gov.uk in England and Wales
• gov.scot in Scotland
• nidirect.gov.uk in Northern Ireland.

The Bereavement Advice Centre also has information on what to do when someone dies.

Telling other people about your relative or friend’s death can be difficult. You may get very upset and be unsure who to tell and what to say.

You may feel that you want to tell people yourself. But this can be tiring and emotional, so do not feel you have to do it all. You could ask close relatives and friends to help.

You could start by writing a list of people you would like to contact, and think about how to do it. You can use address books, mobile phones or social media to help you make a list.

You might also find it helpful to think about what you want to say and write it down before you contact people. There is no right or wrong way to tell people, but this might be a starting point: ‘I am sorry to say I have some very sad news. (Name of person) has been ill for some time/was suddenly taken ill and died earlier today/this week.'

The doctor, nurse or bereavement staff will usually give you information about how to register your relative or friend’s death. This can be done after the medical certificate of cause of death (MCCD) form has been emailed to the registrar.

The person who can register the death varies in different parts of the UK. You can find more information about this at gov.uk/register-a-death.

You will register the death with the registrar of births, marriages and deaths. This must be done within 5 days (in England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or 8 days (in Scotland), unless it has been referred to the coroner or procurator fiscal.

Registrars’ offices are also called register offices or registry offices. Some have an appointment system, so call and check before you go. You can find your nearest registry office online.

You can get the phone number for the registrar’s office:

• from your GP or the hospital
• online
• by calling the Bereavement Advice Centre on 0800 634 9494.

Things to take with you include:

• their birth certificate, and certificate of marriage or civil partnership, if they had one
• details of any state benefits they were getting
• their NHS medical card, if they had one
• their National Insurance number, and that of their surviving spouse or civil partner, if they have one.

The registrar enters the details in the register and gives you a certificate for burial or cremation. You need to give this to the funeral director. If you need a certificate of registration of death for social security purposes, the registrar will give you one.

Before you go to the registrar’s office, it is helpful to think about how many copies of the death certificate you might need. These are original, certified copies and not photocopies. You can buy certified copies for a small charge at the time of registration. You can also buy certified copies later, but they may cost more.

You usually need 1 certified copy for each life insurance policy (or similar) that you need to claim. You may need copies for other official agencies and organisations. They will usually return the copy of the death certificate once they have seen it.

You can get more information about registering the death from:

• gov.uk in England and Wales
• gov.scot in Scotland
• nidirect.gov.uk in Northern Ireland.

When someone dies, there are a lot of official agencies and organisations that need to be told. These include:

• employers
• the tax office
• banks and building societies
• insurance companies
• the local council
• the landlord or housing association
• electricity, gas or phone companies.

Many of these organisations will need a certified death certificate and other information such as full names, addresses and account numbers.

You may also need to contact others – for example internet, television, and other service providers.

Contacting all of these can take a lot of time, and you may not feel emotionally ready to do this. You do not have to contact everyone at once. You can also ask a relative or friend to help. Many organisations and companies have staff who are trained to deal with calls when someone dies. You can ask to speak to the bereavement team if they have one.

You may find it helpful to write a list of all the organisations you need to contact and gradually work through it over a few weeks. Or you may prefer to contact them all at once.

It is important to tell insurance companies straight away. This is because insurance policies become invalid as soon as someone dies.

The Bereavement Advice Centre has a useful checklist of the organisations you need to contact.

Tell Us Once is a service available in some local authorities in England, Scotland and Wales. It allows you to report a death to most government organisations at the same time. The local registrar will tell you if the service is available in your area and how to use it. They will give you a unique reference number to access the service.

You can find more information about the Tell Us Once service at gov.uk/tell-us-once.

You may be worried about money after someone close to you has died. You may have been relying on their income or pension to help share the bills.

If your spouse or civil partner has died, you may be entitled to a Bereavement Payment or Bereavement Allowance. You may also be entitled to extra pension payments from their pension or National Insurance contributions. To find out more:

• if you live in England, Scotland or Wales, visit gov.uk/browse/benefits/bereavement.
• if you live in Northern Ireland, contact your local Jobs and Benefits office.
• You can also contact the Macmillan Support Line on 0808 808 00 00.