What To Do After A Death

Most people at some point in their lives will find themselves responsible for making the funeral arrangements after the death of a relative or friend. It is a difficult and worrying time, where to start? What to do? We have gathered some practical advice to help and guide you. You can download this information here and keep it somewhere safe or pop into one of our parlours and pick up a copy.

WHO CAN REGISTER A DEATH?

Any relative of the deceased
Any person present at time of death
The deceased executor/legal representative
The occupier of the property where the person died
Anyone who knows the information to be registered

DOCUMENTS NEEDED TO REGISTER

The Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (Form 11)

Medical Certificate of Cause of Death is compulsory, however these other documents will help speed up the process

The deceased Birth/Marriage/Civil Partnership Certificate
The deceased Medical Card
Any documents relating to receipt of Pension/DWP
Passport/Driving Licence (Non EU Nationals)

DOCUMENTS RETURNED

The Certificate of Registration of Death (Form 14) – To be given to the Funeral Director
DWP registration/notification of death certificate (Form 334 IS)
An abbreviated extract of death entry

A Full Death Certificate can be purchased for £10. The charge will be £15 after 1 month of date of registration (£5 search fee included), or £10 if you have a copy of the abbreviated certificate. All requests must be made in person at the Registration Office.

REGISTRATION OFFICES

All deaths MUST be registered within eight (8) days of the date of death and can be registered in any registration district within Scotland. If the death occurred abroad the death must be registered in that country.

Opening hours of Registration Offices vary between Local Authorities and most operate an appointment system. It is best to check beforehand and make an appointment rather than appearing in person at your local office.

East Kilbride Civic Centre, Andrew Street, G74 1AB 0303 123 1015
Hamilton 102 Cadzow Street, Hamilton, ML3 6HH 0845 740 6080
Rutherglen 139 Main Street, Rutherglen, G73 2JJ 0141 613 5700
Eastwood Eastwood Park, Giffnock, G46 6UG 0141 577 3008
Glasgow 45 John Street, Glasgow, G1 1LY 0141 287 7677
Glasgow appointments can be booked online – Click Here.

A full list of all other Registration Offices within Scotland is available here.

TELL US ONCE SERVICE

Tell Us Once is a service that lets you report a death to most government organisations in one go.
When you register the death the registrar will:

Let you know if the service is available in your area
Give you the phone number
Give you a unique reference number to use the Tell Us Once service online or by phone

HINTS & TIPS

Check with Bank, Building Society, Insurance Companies, Pension etc. if they need a copy of the original death certificate or if a photocopy will suffice. This will save the need to buy extra copies of the Full Death Certificate if they are not needed.

Out of hours collection of the deceased from nursing home will incur upto an extra £200 charge, if possible wait until office hours to save the added expense.

Be wary of funeral packages that may have services within them that you may not require, or wish to pay for.

Don’t feel rushed into making funeral arrangements when someone has died. Take time to make the right decisions.

It is worth noting that a cremation is less expensive than a burial.

Check for any digital assets such as online bank accounts that may be paperless or credit cards as they may have life insurance attached to them.

Telephone the Department for Work and Pensions on 0345 606 0265 to check if you are eligible for financial assistance.