When someone dies it can be a stressful and upsetting time. As well as coping with the emotional distress a death may bring, you need to notify a number of different organisations.
Registering a death
You are legally required to register a death. Doing so will provide you with documents needed to arrange the funeral and to deal with the deceased's estate.
A death should be registered within five days, unless the Coroner is involved (in which case the Coroner’s Officer will advise you). Please try to contact your local register office before attending, since many offices are only part-time and all operate an appointment system.
Deaths should be registered in the district where they occurred. Nottinghamshire is classed as one registration district, while Nottingham City is another.
If it is not convenient to visit the register office for the appropriate district, details of the death may be given at any other register office in England and Wales by making a declaration. If you register a death by declaration, the necessary documentation cannot be issued immediately, but will be sent to you by the relevant office upon receipt of the declaration. This may cause a delay to the funeral arrangements.
There is no charge to register a death. You will be charged only for any certificates which you request - typically you may wish to buy a certified copy of the register entry (a death certificate) to deal with the deceased's estate. The certificates, costing £4 per copy, are needed for the following purposes:
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Probate or letters of administration
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bank and building society accounts
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the deceased’s life insurance policies
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dealing with the deceased’s stocks and shares.
This is not an exhaustive list, and there are many other purposes for which a death certificate may be required.
All certificates requested after the date of a registration will be £10.
About the registration process
In the event of a death, one of the following people, in order of preference, is legally required to register that death:
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a relative
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a person present at the death
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the occupier of the premises where the death occurred (if he/she was aware of the death)
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the person arranging the funeral (this does not mean the funeral director).
The registrar will need to see the medical certificate of cause of death issued by the GP or hospital doctor who was treating the deceased, unless the Coroner is holding a post mortem or inquest. In addition, it is often useful to take the deceased’s birth certificate, NHS medical card and marriage certificate (where appropriate) to your appointment.
The registrar will ask for the following details about the deceased:
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date and place of death
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full name (including maiden surname where appropriate)
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date and place of birth
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occupation, where appropriate
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full name, date of birth and occupation of spouse/late spouse or civil partner/late civil partner, where relevant
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usual address
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whether or not the deceased was receiving any pensions or allowances from public funds.
The registrar will issue two documents for specific purposes:
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the certificate for burial or cremation (green form). This must be handed to the funeral director so that arrangements can be made for the funeral to take place. In certain circumstances a form will be issued by the Coroner.
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Certificate of Registration of Death (Form 344 or BD8). This is for Social Security purposes. It should be completed and sent to the local Department of Social Security (benefits) office as directed.
Tell Us Once
Our Tell Us Once service can help you by informing on your behalf other national and local government services that need to know about the death. Find out more on our Tell Us Once page.
Find out more
If you have any questions, please contact your local register office. You will also find more detailed information about what to do when someone dies on the Direct Gov website.
