If you have experienced the passing of a loved one, you may want to know what to do when someone dies. This article looks at the steps to take when someone dies.
Shropshire Funerals are independent, family-run funeral directors based in Oswestry, Shropshire. Our trusted team of experienced funeral directors are here to guide you through each step at difficult times.
What are the steps to take when someone dies?
Working out what you should be doing first when someone dies can seem incredibly overwhelming. Besides letting the family and friends of the deceased know the unfortunate news, there are a number of organisations that you may need to notify.
When a loved one has died, our sense of bewilderment and sorrow can be overpowering. Death is always an upsetting and traumatic event, whether or not we feel that we are emotionally prepared for it. You not only have to deal with your immediate grief and sadness but also handle the administrative practicalities that have to be carried out when someone dies.
Composing a checklist can be especially helpful. It can be incredibly beneficial for you to write everything down, including what has to be done and when.
This simple task can help lift the weight off your shoulders a little bit as instead of just having several jobs weighing on your mind; you have a convenient action plan in place. You can make your way through your list step by step with the support of your family and friends.
Immediately after a death
If the person's death was expected, for example, if they died due to a terminal illness, in most cases, their doctor will issue a medical certificate of the cause of death in order to allow their death to be registered at the Register Office as soon as possible.
The Register Office will then provide a death certificate. An unexpected death, however, may have to be reported to a coroner. This is a doctor or lawyer that is responsible for carrying out investigations on unforeseen deaths.
The coroner may request a post-mortem or inquest to establish the cause of death. If somebody dies in hospital, then the hospital will typically issue a medical certificate and formal notice. The hospital staff will then support you with the next steps you need to take.
Getting a medical certificate
After someone has died, the first thing you should do is contact their doctor or your local hospital straight away to get a medical certificate.
This will outline the cause of death, along with the time, date and place. If the person who died passed in the hospital or in a hospice, then the responsibility for this task will usually be taken on by them.
Registering the death
Next, you will need to get in contact with the local registrar to make an appointment to register the death.
The registrar of deaths will then provide you with a green certificate called the Notification or Registration of Deaths.
This will need to be completed, including the national insurance number of the deceased, because this will inform every government department using this number of the death.
The time limit for this is five days after the person's death, and this documentation will be needed to be able to arrange the funeral.
Arranging the funeral
The next thing to do is to begin organising the funeral. Your passed loved one may have left some instructions describing their preferences regarding which funeral directors to use, or they might have had particular religious or spiritual requirements which you know of.
Suppose the person's death is unexpected, as this is common. In that case, you might want to discuss with family and friends when arranging a funeral to get a better idea of what funeral director you should use as well as a good sense of what type of funeral ceremony they may have wished for.
In any case, you should get in contact with a funeral director as soon as possible to discuss arrangements like the required coffin type, the form of the service and whether it will be a cremation or burial.
During the weeks following the death
When a person dies, there are usually many things to deal with, such as their finances, paperwork, legal issues, and property, whilst also dealing with your own emotional response to their death.
When somebody dies, you will usually need to inform numerous departments of the local and central government and other government agencies to update their records.
Make the person's landlord and other organisations aware.
Once you've dealt with these immediate practicalities, you will then need to consider who else you need to inform of the death.
Making a list of people that were close to the deceased will help you with sharing the burden. It may even be helpful to check your loved one's address book.
The list will obviously include family and friends but could also contain their employer, colleagues, any caring or assistance agencies, solicitor, accountant, landlord, utility companies, the mail office, any companies the deceased may have subscriptions with, banks, insurance companies, etc.
You may also choose to insert a death notice in the local newspaper.
Notify government departments
In most areas of England and Wales, the Tell Us Once Service will allow you to report a death to numerous government departments, agencies and the local authority all in one contact.
The Tell Us Once service will help you report the person's death to most offices paying benefits to the deceased and other government agencies like the Passport Service and DVLA. You need to register the death first.
While some religions can have funerals that last for days, and some will decide to have direct cremations with no service at all.
You can get in contact with Tell Us Once either face-to-face, via a freephone number, online via the GOV.UK website. The registrar will provide you with contact details when you register their death, including a reference number you can use online.
Return the person's passport and driving licence
If you have already used the Tell Us Once service, you will not need to fill in a return form as the DVLA and Her Majesty's Passport Office will have already been notified. You will only be able to use the Tell Us Once service if you know the passport number of the deceased.
If the passport is lost or unavailable, then you will have to fill out a form on the government's website and send in an original copy of the person's death certificate. They will then send the certificate back to you after they have cancelled the passport on their system.
Notify insurers and creditors
You should ideally notify any insurers or creditors as soon as you possibly can after you have received their death certificate or within a month of death.
You should inform your loved one's insurance company, credit card companies, bank or building society, pension provider, utility companies and any other companies that either owed money to the deceased or were owed money by them.
You can do this by calling up the company, visiting their local branch, or visiting their website, where there may be an online form for you to complete. Suppose you know the person's account details.
In that case, there are some free websites available that will help you contact the banks, utility companies, pension providers, insurance firms, broadband and TV providers and even social media websites about bereavement.
Doing this will help you save time and stress as you will only have to upload the death certificate once with the service.
Extra resources and support
It is hugely beneficial to have somebody who can assist you with putting someone's affairs in order and planning their funeral, as going it alone can be incredibly overwhelming and strenuous. It also feels nice to have somebody listen to you and provide a shoulder to cry on during such a difficult time.
It is advantageous to decide on who is going to be the main point of contact. This person, usually a close family member, should be present and available throughout the days following the death.
It helps if that person has another person close to them who can help with advice and discussion on important decisions.
You can find out more information about what to do when somebody dies by visiting the government and citizens advice websites.
Are you looking for an independent funeral director in Shropshire? Our family run funeral director service provides support for you and your loved ones during the funeral arrangement and service.