At some point in our lives we encounter the one thing no one wants to deal with in this life. The passing of someone we love. You can prepare yourself as much as possible, but when that inevitable moment comes you may hit a wall of overwhelming emotions that you don’t know how to cope with.
Maybe you are reading this to see what you can anticipate from that moment or maybe you are expecting your loved one to pass in the near future and you're in search of answers. That is why we are here, we want to help you with everything that we can. So if you want to know what you have to do next, we prepared a list with the steps you have to take.
1. Get a medical certificate
If your loved one passes away in a hospital you will get the certificate from them, in most cases you will receive it online, however if it happens at home there are two possible situations.
If the death was of natural causes then you will need to call their GP in order to get the certificate online, but if it was an unexpected death, you will get the document from the police after there was an investigation at Coroners.
2. Documents and necessary information you need to prepare
- medical certificate with the cause of death
- full name, including any previous names – such as maiden name
- date and place of birth
- last address
- occupation
- full name, date of birth and occupation of their surviving/late spouse or civil partner if they were married.
- birth certificate
- marriage or civil partnership certificate
- National Insurance number
- NHS medical card
- proof of address, such as a utility bill
- driving license
- passport
3. Register the death
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland you have to register the death within five days, and within eight days for Scotland.
If there’s a coroner’s inquest the time period will be delayed, until the investigation comes to an end.
You will need to obtain these documents: a death certificate plus multiple certified copies, a certificate for burial or cremation and a registration or notification of death form.
4. Where to post an obituary
An obituary is a meaningful way to let people know about the death of a loved one. It helps memorialize them and provides information about viewing, funeral, memorial service, burial arrangements, memorial donations.
- National newspapers
- Local newspapers
- Funero.co.uk
- Obituary websites
- Community publications
- Industry publications
- Church or religious publications
- Church website
- Social media
5. Arrange the funeral
Arranging a funeral can be really time consuming and overwhelming. Maybe you don’t know the first things you need to do, that’s why most people choose the help of a funeral director that can make things easier for them. A funeral director will take some of the planning burdens from you and help you with everything they can. They can help you with all the documentation, the planning of the event and they can help you make the decisions you can not do.
However if you choose to do it by yourself here is what you need to keep in mind:
- You have to choose if you want a burial or a cremation (maybe the loved one that passed left their wishes in a will or maybe they told you before their passing)
- Select a funeral home
- Choose a coffin or a cremation urn
- Choose a location for the funeral service and a clergyman or officiant
6. Notify the person’s landlord and other organizations, notify government departments, notify insurers and creditors
7. Check to see what kind of Benefits and Government Support you are entitled to
We are here to help! If you need additional information about everything that we discussed in this article or any other question, don’t hesitate to contact us at info@funero.co.uk!
We offer direct cremation services at a very reasonable price, if that is how your loved one wants to be buried or you are more inclined towards this option don’t hesitate to ask for a quote from us!