Archive Website of the UK government

Getting started

Before you start, it would be useful to have the following information to hand about the person who has died.

• National Insurance number
  
• NHS number
  
• date and place of birth
  
• date of marriage or civil partnership (if appropriate)
  
• tax reference number

• Documents and information needed when someone dies

• Find out about wills and probate

What to do in the first five days

There are a few steps that need to be taken shortly after the death. In many cases the hospital or GP involved will help you with these early steps:

• notify the family GP
  
• register the death at a register office
  
• find the will - the deceased person’s solicitor may have a copy if you can't find one
  
• begin funeral arrangements - you will need to check the will for any special requests
  
• if relevant, complete form BD8 given to you when you register the death and send to the local Jobcentre Plus or Social Security
  
• if the person who has died was receiving any benefits or tax credits, advise the offices that were making the payments - if you can't find relevant correspondence, use the links below to the tax credit helpline and Jobcentre plus

• Registering a death

• Arranging a funeral

If there is a will

• contact the executor if this isn’t you (usually nominated in the will to sort out the deceased's affairs) to enable them to start the process of obtaining probate

If there is no will

• decide who will apply to sort out the deceased's affairs
  
• contact the Probate Registry to apply for 'letters of administration'

• What to do if there is no will

• What is probate?

• Applying for probate

Who else to contact

As well as informing people who are close to the person, in many cases you'll need to close down accounts, or cancel or change insurance details, subscriptions, agreements, payments or direct debits.

Here’s a list to help you keep track; just cross through the ones that don’t apply:

• relatives and friends
  
• employer
  
• school
  
• solicitor/accountant

Government organisations

• the relevant tax office
  
• National Insurance contributions office if they were self-employed (to cancel payments)
  
• Child Benefit office (at latest within eight weeks)
• Tax Credit office
  
• local authority if they paid council tax, had a parking permit, were issued with a blue badge for disabled parking, or received social services help, attended day care or similar
  
• UK Identity and Passport Service, to return and cancel a passport
  
• DVLA, to return any driving licence, cancel car tax or return
  
• car registration documents/change ownership

• What to do about tax and benefits after a death Opens new window

• Returning a deceased person's passport

• Find a local authority

Financial organisations

• general insurance companies - contents, car, travel, medical etc
  
• any other company with which the deceased may have had rental, hire purchase or loan agreements
  
• if the deceased was the first named on an insurance policy, make contact as early as possible to check that you are still insured
  
• pension providers/life insurance companies
  
• banks and building societies
  
• mortgage provider
  
• hire purchase or loan companies
  
• credit card providers/store cards

Utilities and household contacts

• landlord or local authority if they rented a property
  
• any private organisation/agency providing home help
  
• utility companies if accounts were in the deceased's name
  
• Royal Mail, if mail needs re-directing
  
• TV/internet companies with which the deceased had subscriptions

• Find a local authority

• Royal Mail redirection service Opens new window

Other useful contacts

• Bereavement Register and Deceased Preference Service to remove the deceased's name from mailing lists and databases
  
• clubs, trade unions, associations with seasonal membership for cancellation and refunds
  
• church/regular place of worship
  
• social groups to which the deceased belonged
  
• dentist
  
• creditors - anyone to whom the deceased owed money
  
• debtors - anyone who owed the deceased money

• Register with the Bereavement Register Opens new window

• Deceased Preference Service Opens new window

Benefits and financial help

You may be able to claim certain benefits and one-off payments if you lived with or were dependent on the deceased. Time limits apply, so contact your nearest Jobcentre Plus office as soon as possible to find out.

• contact Jobcentre Plus
  
• make a claim for Bereavement Allowance
  
• make a claim for Widowed Parent’s Allowance
  
• make a claim for a Bereavement Payment
  
• make a claim for a Funeral Payment
  
• check your current benefits and tax credits

• Find your local Jobcentre Plus office Opens new window

• Bereavement Allowance

• Widowed Parent's Allowance

• Bereavement Payment

• Funeral Payments

Making a new will

Surviving relatives and friends of the deceased may need to make a new will. It's important to ask a solicitor about this.

• Making a will

Bereavement – counselling and support

Everyone deals with bereavement in their own way. If you or someone you know needs counselling or support, ask your family doctor or contact an organisation such as Cruse Bereavement Care. Their aim is to promote the well-being of bereaved people and provides counselling and support. The organisation also offers information, advice, education and training services.

Your local authority may provide support and advice about the arrangements that need to be made after a bereavement, such as registering the death and obtaining a death certificate. If you follow the link to the bereavement service you can enter details of where you live and you will be directed to your local authority website where you can find out more.

• Cruse Bereavement Care Opens new window

• Find out about the bereavement service Opens new window

Print out and keep the checklist handy

If you would like get a version of this checklist to print out and keep, please download the PDF (portable document format) from the link below. We have also put together some guidance that will help you if you are unsure how to do this.

• Download 'What to do when someone dies checklist' (PDF, 67K) Opens new window

• Help with PDF files