Whether it was expected or sudden, dealing with the death of a family member or loved one can be one of the hardest things we have to face in our lifetime.
For those who are responsible for making the funeral arrangements, we have created this step-by-step guide to what to do when someone dies to help make a difficult time a little easier. We always encourage you to contact us at the earliest stage, as part of our service is to alleviate some of the initial worries that you may face. Call us on 01803 882385.
What to do if someone dies at home
Telephone us on 01803 882385 24 hours a day. The death will need to be verified by a qualified person. This is not the same as being certified. The verification allows us to attend to move your loved one into our care at our chapels of rest in Paignton and Brixham. The first call should be to your GP if during normal surgery opening hours. Outside these hours either contact the nursing team (eg Hospice at home etc) that have been attending. They will usually be able to verify that the person has passed away. As a last resort, you can call the ambulance service. If the death is expected you must insist to the ambulance staff that no further action is required and that you are content for us to come to move your loved one into our care.
If the ambulance staff feel that the death is violent or unnatural they may call the police to attend on behalf of the coroner. Please don’t be alarmed as this is standard procedure. The coroner’s undertaker will attend to move your loved one into the coroners care at a local hospital mortuary (Torbay / RD&E / Derriford). We will be able to liaise with the coroner and the doctors regarding further action.
Care of the body
Unless to coroner is involved, we will be able to move your loved one into our care from any private residence or nursing home as soon as verification has taken place.
Register the death
After the medical certificate has been issued, the next thing to do is to register the death of your loved one. Typically, it is a relative of the deceased who registers the death, but anyone present when the death occurred, the deceased’s legal representative or executor, or anyone who has the information required can register a death. Stockman & Loram will provide you with a full information pack regarding what to do and how to register the death.
Inform authorities and agencies
There are many formalities to be undertaken following the death of a loved one with a number of authorities and agencies needing to be informed of the death. Government bodies from pensions to passports, financial institutions and insurance providers, local authorities and landlords all need to be contacted. The task can seem daunting, but there may be some central services you can use to make it easier. The registrar offers a “Tell us once” service which we always recommend using. This notifies all government departments and agencies. (DWP, council tax, electoral roll,passport, driving licence, blue badge, bus pass)
Financial arrangements
Once the funeral has been arranged and the relevant authorities have been informed of your loved one’s death, it is important to deal with any outstanding financial arrangements. The quickest way to a speedy resolution is to find a valid Will that appoints executors who can obtain a grant of probate that allows the estate to be administered. Usually it is possible to submit the funeral account in full to the deceased’s account for payment prior to probate. We find this is extremely helpful for most families as it takes away the need for them to find funds before probate.
Medical certificate
A medical certificate confirming the cause of death is required to register a death and will usually be issued by the last Doctor to have seen the person alive within 14 days. This process is an important part of what to do when someone dies as this officially confirms the decreased status of the individual. As there are now some complicated issues around certification due to changes to GP visiting services, usually Stockman & Loram will organise this directly with the Doctors.
Register the death
After the medical certificate has been issued and the body moved to where it will stay until the funeral, the next thing to do is to register the death of your loved one.
Typically, it is a relative of the deceased who registers the death, but anyone present when the death occurred, the deceased’s legal representative or executor or anyone who has the information required can register a death. Registering the death of the individual is important aspect of what to do when someone dies.
The registrar will provide a green form – the certificate for burial or cremation take place.This should be handed to your funeral director at Stockman & Loram.
The registrar will provide certified death certificates at £11 each. We usually recommend getting 3/4 to cover cancelling things like bank accounts, insurance policies as well as for the solicitor if there is a Will.
Inform authorities and agencies
There are many formalities to be undertaken following the death of a loved one with a number of authorities and agencies needing to be informed of the death. Government bodies from pensions to passports, financial institutions and insurance providers, local authorities and landlords all need to be contacted. The task can seem daunting, but there may be some central services you can use to make it easier.
We recommend using the ‘Tell Us Once’ service at the registrar to notify government organisations in one go. The services covered can include:
Local libraries
Electoral services
Council tax
Income tax
Department of Work and Pensions
Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)
UK Passport Agency
It is important to inform the deceased’s landlord of their death as soon as possible. If you were living with the deceased prior to their death and the lease is in their name, you must let your landlord know so that it can be updated. You will also need to contact any companies that you make regular payments to and change any bills to your name.
You must inform financial institutions where the deceased held accounts to put a freeze on any accounts and protect the deceased’s estate. These include banks, credit card companies, pension providers and insurers. It is generally easy to inform them, with a simple phone call usually being enough, although they will require further documentation before any monies can be transferred.
Registering with the Bereavement Register will allow you to ease the burden of dealing with the deceased’s post by arranging redirection if necessary.
Financial arrangements
Once the funeral has been arranged and the relevant authorities have been informed of your loved one’s death, it is important to deal with any outstanding financial arrangements. The quickest way to a speedy resolution is to find a valid Will that appoints executors who can obtain a grant of probate that allows the estate to be administered.
Finding someone’s Will is important, with the original and most recent document required to carry out probate. It can be tricky to find, involving a search of deceased’s personal papers. If you cannot find the Will, you can pay a £40 fee to search the National Will Register. If a will has not been made, and the deceased has died intestate, there are rules and guidelines that will be followed to establish who receives what from any estate.
An executor, or executors, must be established; typically, family or close friends of the deceased. The executor is required to sign key documents and help take the lead in coordinating probate. People nominated as executors in a Will may renounce their role if they prefer not to take on the responsibility.
As executor you can choose to obtain a grant of probate yourself, or delegate the task to a solicitor. Doing this yourself requires applying for a grant of probate, by sending a form with the will and death certificate to the Probate Registry. Once the probate process is complete, all of the deceased’s assets will be bound together in a special bank account, before being finally paid out to the beneficiaries named in the Will.
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