If the deceased has been seen by the Doctor within the last fourteen days a death certificate can normally be issued, and the Doctor will advise as to the availability of it.

After the Doctor has visited, it may be your wish that the deceased be taken to your chosen Funeral Director's Chapel of Rest. This can be arranged by telephone at any hour, day or night. If the death has occurred in a Hospital, Nursing or Residential home, most of the procedures mentioned will have been carried out, and with your consent, the deceased taken to the Funeral Director's Chapel of Rest. A member of staff will be able to advise you upon the availability of the death certificate.

In all cases the death certificate must be taken to the Registrar of Births, Marriages and Deaths.

When visiting the Registrar, it is helpful if you can take with you the deceased's medical card, although if at the time you cannot find it, this will not prevent your being able to register the death.

Who can register a death ?

Copies of the registrar's entry (sometimes called death certificates) can be obtained from the registrar upon payment of the current fee. You will need these for; insurance claims, Probate (if the deceased has left a will) Bank Accounts, Pension Schemes, National Savings, Premium Bonds, etc.

Special copies are issued for Friendly Societies.

However your choice is made, it would be wise to select a Funeral Director who is a member of The National Association of Funeral Directors, who ensure their members comply with the Association's Code of Practice, which was drawn up in conjunction with the Office of Fair Trading. Many safeguards for the client are contained within the Code, and all members have to meet certain standards.

We are members of The National Association of Funeral Directors, and you will find the Code of Practice set out on this web site.

The Coroner is a judicial officer whose function it is to determine the cause of death in all cases where a Doctor has not been able to issue a death certificate. The fact that a death has been reported to the Coroner should not give cause for undue alarm, it is simply the process by which
the cause of death must be established in cases where a normal death certificate cannot be issued.

Sometimes the Coroner may be able to deal with the case by consultation with the Doctor. The Coroner may then agree that the Doctor may issue a death certificate and registration of the death can then take place in the normal manner, after the registrar has received a form from the Coroner's Office and the death certificate ( which the Doctor will have made available to the next of kin or personal representative of the deceased).

In cases that cannot be resolved by consultation between the Doctor and Coroner, the Coroner will require a postmortem examination, which usually shows death was due to natural causes, in which case no inquest will be held, and the Coroner will send a form to the Registrar of Deaths
indicating that registration may take place, (no death certificate will be issued by the Doctor).

Where the death was not due to natural causes, for example a road traffic accident, the Coroner will hold an inquest. The purpose of an inquest is to establish the identity of the deceased, when and how the death took place, and the actual cause of death. Following the inquest the Coroner will issue a certificate for either burial or cremation, to allow the funeral to take place. He may then adjourn the inquest and reconvene it at a later date, having gathered relevant information relating to the death, and finally close.

Your Funeral Director is fully conversant with all the Coroner's procedures and can advise you fully.