Checklist What to do when someone dies

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Obtain a Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD) from a Medical Professional

Inform family and close friends

Gather important information and documentation (where relevant):

  • Medical Certificate of Death (MCCD)
  • Date and place of birth (Birth Certificate, if possible)
  • Date and place of death
  • Proof of address (e.g utility bill)
  • National Insurance number
  • NHS number
  • Tax reference number
  • Child Benefit number
  • Passport
  • Driving License
  • Council Tax
  • Date/s of Marriage/s, Civil Partnership, Divorce/s (If appropriate)
  • Details of spouse or partner (including their NI number)
  • Organ Donor information
  • Occupation
  • Did they have any Government Pensions or other benefits?

Register the death. Make an appointment with the local Registrar of Births and Deaths. The death must be registered within 5 days (8 in Scotland). NB You will need to have the MCCD to register

From the Registrar of Birth & Deaths you will need to obtain the following:

Death Certificate plus multiple certified copies (you will need certified copies to send to banks, legal and insurance companies)

A Certificate for Burial or Cremation (a ‘Green Form’), (GR021 in N. Ireland)

A Registration or Notification of Death Form (BD8) (3344SI in Scotland, 36/DB8 in N.Ireland). Fill in and send to the Dept of Works and Pensions

Inform the relevant Government Departments – using the ‘Tell Us Once‘ service, if there is one in your area, or individually if there is not.

  • Department for Work and Pensions (DWP Bereavement Service)
  • HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC)
  • National Insurance (NI) Contributions Office
  • Child Benefit Office
  • Tax Credit Office
  • Passport Office
  • Personal, Workplace and Armed Forces Pensions
  • Local Council
  • Office of the Public Guardian to cancel or alter power of attorney
  • DVLA (if the person had a driving licence or to change vehicle registration details)

Below is a list of other organisations you may need to inform. Not all will be relevant to you and it is not exhaustive, but you can add to it as necessary.

  • Employer
  • Lawyer
  • Accountant
  • Financial Adviser
  • Banks, Pay Pal, Bitcoin, etc
  • Utility providers (electric, gas, water, etc)
  • Insurers (household, mortgage, life, health, car, pet, etc)
  • Mortgage provider
  • Credit card provider
  • Social media platforms
  • Car loan
  • TV and media subscriptions (Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc)
  • Books, audio books, music subscriptions
  • Online gaming subscriptions
  • Online photo/data storage
  • Home security systems
  • Landlord
  • Mobile phone
  • Landline telephone
  • Internet
  • Antivirus (Norton, etc)
  • Gym or health club membership
  • Loyalty cards
  • Trade Unions
  • Newspapers
  • Milk

Is there a Will and/or a Letter of Wishes? A letter of wishes may specify whether the person who has died would like to be buried or cremated.

Is there a pre-paid funeral plan or funeral insurance?

Plan the funeral service or celebration of life. Please see the whiteballoon Planning a Funeral Checklist and Planning a Funeral Information for guidance.

Post a Notice of Death and/or Obituary, either in a newspaper or online.

The Executors (if there is a Will) or Administrators (if there is no Will) will need to apply to the Probate Registry.

Check your entitlement to Government support and benefits.

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