When Someone Dies

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Support and Advice When Someone Dies

Alfred Smith Funeral Director and Monumental Mason can offer advice and support to families in Rose Hill, we also have branches in Carshalton, Streatham, Stoneleigh and surrounding areas.

Below is some brief information on what to do when someone dies, it is not an exhaustive list and we would advise the use of the links provided for further information relating to your own area.

We also have a useful question and answer section on this page, many have found this helpful.

Death Certificate

It is best to inform the local doctor as soon as possible. A death certificate may be issued when the doctor visits the house or you may be asked to collect this from the surgery.

The hospital staff will have arranged for the completion of the Death Certificate by one of the attending doctors. If you would like a cremation to take place then either inform the hospital, or contact ourselves so that we can arrange for the additional form (the Cremation Form 4, 5 and 10) to be completed.

If the deceased has not been seen by his/her doctor within 14 days prior to death or has not been in hospital for more than 24 hours or the death is sudden then it is required to be reported to the Coroner. The doctor may inform the Coroner on your behalf.

The Coroner

The Coroner's role is to establish a cause of death, and this may be done by post mortem. Once the cause of death has been ascertained, the deceased will be released allowing the funeral to proceed. This process can take a few days or more. We will then be able to tell you when the death can be registered. Note that if a Coroner's Inquest is needed (death thought to occur due to unnatural causes), this can take some time. We will be able to advise you on this.

Registrars will also require the following information:

The date and place of death
The Deceased’s last address
The Deceased’s full name and surname
The Deceased’s date and place of birth
The Deceased’s occupation or last occupation
The full name, date of birth and occupation of their Spouse or Civil Partner
Whether the Deceased was receiving Pension or any other benefits

The Registrar will give you

A Certificate of Burial or Cremation (Green Form) this should be given to the Funeral Director as soon as possible
A Certificate of Registration of Death (Form BD8)
This may need to be send to the social security office if the Deceased was receiving state pension or benefits
The Death Certificate
- This is a copy of the entry in the death registrar, you may need more than one copy for the will, insurance policies, banks and private pension schemes. These are available at a cost.

Questions and Answers

If the death has occurred at home (and is expected)

Contact the deceased’s GP’s surgery, a GP will come and verify the death. A community nurse may also be able to verify the death.
You may then contact a funeral director of your choice to take into their care.

If there is no coroner involvement – Please see below, your GP will issue a medical certificate of cause of death, which you can collect from the surgery you will need to take with you when you go to register the death.

If the death has occurred at a Hospice or Nursing home

If the death has occurred in Hospital

If there isn’t any coroner involvement, the bereavement office will be able to tell you how the medical certificate of cause of death will be issued. When the certificate is ready, they will make an appointment with you, so you can go along and collect it.

Each hospital requires certain paperwork to be completed before we are permitted to bring the deceased into our care. We will always advise you.

If the death has occurred elsewhere

If the death has occurred abroad