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When someone dies... |
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How to find us
Barclays Bank Chambers
549 High Road
Tottenham
London
N17 6SF
T. 020 8808 4901
F. 020 8808 4905
enquiries@fairbairnsmith.co.uk Opening hours: Mon - Fri: 9.30 a.m. - 5.30 p.m.
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The
following information is intended to help you with some basic facts and
legal requirements following a death.
■
Who can register a death?
■
Where
do I register the death?
■
Do I
have to attend the Registrar personally?
■
What information will the Registrar require?
■
What
does the Registrar do?
■
Who
arranges the funeral?
■
What is a Post Mortem?
■
What is an
Inquest?
■
What does "Probate" mean?
■
Will I
need a Solicitor?
Who can register a death?
In the event of a death one of the following persons has a legal
obligation to register the death within 5 days of its occurrence:
■
a
relative of the deceased
■
a
person present at the death
■
a
person arranging the funeral
(not the funeral director)
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Where do I register the death? Normally at the Registrar’s Office for the district where the person died. Here are the addresses and telephone numbers of those most local to our offices: ■ Barnet 182 Burnt Oak Broadway, Edgware, HA8 0AU Tel. 020 8731 1100 ■ Enfield 1 Gentlemans Row, Enfield, EN2 6PS Tel. 020 8367 5757 ■ Haringey Civic Centre, High Road, N22 8LE Tel. 020 8489 2605 ■ Islington Town Hall, Upper Street, N1 2UD Tel. 020 7527 6347/6350/6351Do I have to attend the Registrar personally? Normally, yes. If it is absolutely impossible, telephone the Registrar’s Office for advice. What information will the Registrar require? ■ The full name of the person who has died (and her maiden name if she was married or widowed) ■ His or her usual address ■ The date and place of death ■ The date and place of birth ■ His or her occupation (and if she was married or widowed the name and occupation of her husband ■ Whether he or she was in receipt of a pension or benefits ■ If he or she left a husband or wife, the husband or wife’s name and date of birth
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What does the Registrar do?
He or she will give you:
■
A green
Certificate
You will need to give this to the Funeral Director to enable him or her
to collect the body from Hospital if need be and to arrange the funeral
for you.
■
A white
Certificate
You will need this if there are State Pension moneys outstanding.
If there is a Will then really it is the job of the person named in the Will as Executor. But if the Executor is a Bank or a Solicitor then it is usually the immediate family who do so. It is a good idea however to contact any professional Executor and let him or her know what you are doing, particularly if you are going to ask the Funeral Director to send the bill for the funeral to someone other than yourself. If there is no Will then usually it is the legal next of kin (but this may not necessarily be the person the hospital have recorded as the next of kin). Remember as well that if you sign for the funeral arrangements then you are most likely undertaking legal responsibility to pay the Funeral Directors. It is not their job to work out who you can ask to refund you the money, so make sure before you sign that the money will be available to pay them when the bill arrives. Make sure the Funeral Director is aware of any special wishes the deceased person had about his or her funeral and liaise closely with the Priest or Minister if there is to be a Church Service involved. It is a good idea to ask for a Certified Copy Death Certificate at the same time. It will be needed by Solicitors, Insurance Companies, etc. and costs £3.50. If the death is unexpected or if the person’s own doctor hasn’t seen them recently, the death has to be reported to the Coroner for the District. It is his or her job to find the cause of death, which is by a medical examination called a post-mortem. There is usually a waiting time of a few days and the funeral cannot take place until it is done. The Coroner’s Office will keep the family informed. Where the death is unexplained or due to unnatural causes then a more formal investigation may be required, and this is called an Inquest and is held at the Coroner’s Court. Usually however the Coroner will issue a temporary Certificate to let the funeral take place. When the Inquest is over the Coroner registers the death automatically. Probate means the administration of the estate of a deceased person, reading the Will if there is one, collecting in the assets, paying the debts (including the funeral) and death duties (if any) and paying the money to the people entitled to it. Maybe. If you want a preliminary talk about what is involved you can make an appointment to see us then you can go away and make a decision. We won’t charge you for an initial interview. Please bring with you: ■ The Death Certificate ■ The Will if there is one ■ Details of any Insurance Policies, Bank Accounts, etc. ■ Details of any property owned by the deceased (and the Deeds if you have them) ■ The Funeral Director’s detailsStaff in our Wills and Probate Department receive professional training in bereavement care.
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