What information will I need to supply when I register a death?
Before making an appointment to register a death, you should consider whether you have the following documents and information:
- Documentary evidence of the cause of death
- Personal details of the deceased
You can print out a Death Registration Checklist of all the information the Registrar will ask and take it along with you or see point 2 below.
- Other documents (if relevant)
1. Documentary evidence of the cause of death
In most cases, you will need to bring a document with you called the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death which is issued from the hospital or General Practitioners surgery. Read the information below to determine which document you will need.
Where a death was expected The document needed to register a death is the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death which must be signed by a doctor who attended the deceased during their final illness. This is either issued by:
- a hospital doctor if the deceased died in hospital or
- a General Practitioner if the deceased died at home or in a rest home or nursing home and the doctor was aware of the illness.
Make sure you collect the Medical Certificate from either the General Office of the Hospital where the person died or from the surgery where the GP is based before you make an appointment at the register office. The death cannot be registered without it.
Where a death is unexpected Where a death is unexpected, the death is usually referred to the Coroner’s office for more investigation. This may result in a post-mortem being carried out. In these cases, the death cannot be registered until the registrar has received authority from the coroner to do so. You will not be issued with a Medical Certificate of Cause of Death in this case.
Before you come to register a death where a post-mortem has taken place, ask the receptionist when making your appointment to make sure that the authority has already been received from the coroners office. This authority, known as (Pink) Form B, is sent to the Register Office. The death cannot be registered without it.
Please note: The coroners authority is not the same document as the letter you may receive from the coroner informing you of the deceased's cause of death.
2. Personal details of the deceased The Registrar will see you in private and ask questions about the person who has died. It is the informant’s responsibility to inform the registrar of the deceased’s personal details. The registrar has no prior details on record of the deceased. Once the details have been entered onto the computer, the record will be printed and you will then be asked to check the information and to sign that it is correct.
You will be asked:
- the date and place of the death
- the first names(s) and surname of the deceased and whether they changed their name at any time (a woman’s maiden name is always recorded if she had married)
- the deceased’s date and place of birth
- their last occupation and whether they retired or not
- the deceased’s full postal address including postcode
- the first name(s) and surname of the deceased’s spouse or civil partner
- the spouse or civil partner’s last occupation and whether they retired or not
- the date of birth of the surviving spouse or civil partner
- the informant’s first names(s) and surname
- the informant’s full postal address including postcode
- the informant’s relationship to the deceased
- whether the deceased was in receipt of an occupational pension from a Government Department (not the State Pension, but a pension paid because the deceased worked for the Civil Service, Army, Navy, RAF, was a teacher, a Post Office employee or an NHS employee). If so, do you have a Pension reference? If not, don’t worry.
- whether you have the deceased’s NHS medical card. If not, don’t worry.
It is most important that the information recorded in the death register is correct because it is a legal record which becomes difficult to correct at a later date. If any mistake is made, for example in the spelling of a name or surname or in the description of the deceased’s occupation or date and place of birth, it will give the person who registered the death some trouble to have it put right.
The person registering the death should check the information in the register very carefully before signing the entry. For more information on correcting a death certificate, use this link for Changes to Death Certificates.
3. Other documents needed.
Bring the deceased's NHS medical card if you can find it. If not, don't worry and don't spend hours looking for it if you can't find it.
You can also bring the deceased's birth and marriage certificates with you if you are unsure of their details, but if you know the information by heart it is not necessary.