Things to do after a death

Registering a death

Telling others

Arranging a funeral

Handling disagreements

Dealing with the estate of someone who died

It may be the closest relative who registers the death. Only certain people can do this, including a relative who was present during the final illness, anyone who was present at the death or an administrator at the hospital where they died. For a full list, visit Gov.uk for England and Wales, or mygov.scot for Scotland.

You’ll need to register the death within five days if you're in England or Wales, and within eight days if you're in Scotland. Gov.uk has guidance about how to register a death, and the next steps you should take. 
Once the death has been registered, you’ll be given:

• a death certificate
• a certificate for burial or cremation (known as the green form) to give to the funeral director
• a form to send to the Department for Work and Pensions, if the person was claiming benefits
• information about bereavement benefits you might be able to claim.

It’s free to register a death, but you’ll be charged £11 for each copy of the death certificate, or £12 in Scotland. You’ll probably need several copies of the death certificate, as banks, insurance companies and other companies often require these to confirm the death.

There are various organisations and individuals that you’ll need to inform when someone dies. Some will need to be contacted more urgently than others.

Friends and family

If you’re responsible for telling friends and family about the death, bear in mind that the way you deliver the news is important. You might be able to tell some people over the phone or by writing to them, while you will want to tell others face to face. Hospice UK and Marie Curie have some guidelines on how to break the news of a death. 

Government and local council departments

You should do this as soon as possible after receiving the death certificate. The Tell Us Once service, which operates in most areas of the UK, lets you notify the following government organisations in one go:

• HM Revenue & Customs to deal with taxes
• the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to cancel any benefits, including their State Pension. They can also check if you now qualify for any benefits or help with funeral costs
• Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) if the person who died drove or owned a car, or had a driver’s license
• the Passport Office to cancel their British passport
• your local council to deal with council services, such as the electoral register, Blue Badge, Council Tax and Housing Benefit
• Social Security Scotland to cancel any benefits or entitlements that the person may have received through the Scottish government
• any public sector or armed forces pension scheme they had.

If Tell Us Once doesn’t cover your area, you will need to inform these organisations yourself. You can find the full list of organisations and government offices to notify at Gov.uk.

There may be other organisations you will need to tell, such as the Office of the Public Guardian, if someone held lasting power of attorney or if they are a deputy for the person. If they had a non-British citizenship, you may need to tell the Home Office or the relevant embassy.

If they were leasing a vehicle through the Motability Scheme, you'll need to tell them too. You can use the form on the Motability website.

Anyone else?

Who you need to tell will depend on the circumstances of the person who died, but could include:

• their employers and colleagues
• their landlord or mortgage provider
• anyone providing medical care, such as a GP or optician
• home carers or day care centres
• anyone making deliveries, such as milk or newspapers
• utility companies
• banks, building societies and credit card providers
• insurance companies
• pension providers.
   

Funerals are usually arranged by a close friend or relative. Most people will use a funeral director to help them with the arrangements. If there isn’t anyone to arrange a funeral, the local council or hospital will arrange a simple public health funeral. 

Most people arrange funerals through a funeral director. You don’t have to – it will be much cheaper not to, but you’ll have a lot more to organise. Funeral directors can provide a number of services, including:

• collecting the person’s body from the place where they died, storing it and delivering it to the funeral
• providing a coffin and a hearse
• arranging pall-bearers
• dealing with the necessary paperwork.

For more information about funeral directors, visit Gov.uk.

What did the person who died want?

The person who died may have left instructions explaining the type of funeral they wanted. You don’t have to follow these, but people usually do and it can be a helpful starting point. Otherwise, you might have to consider this question yourself, perhaps together with others who knew the person.

Funerals are very personal and there are a number of options available. For example, you might want to consider:

• where and when the funeral will take place 
• whether the funeral should be religious or non-religious
• whether it will be a burial or cremation
• whether you want to consider environmentally friendly options, like woodland burials 
• whether there will be a wake and where it will take place
• what sort of coffin or shroud you want
• whether any music will be played at the funeral
• who will deliver any eulogies or readings 
• whether you want people to give flowers, or perhaps make a charitable donation instead
• how much you can afford to spend on the funeral 
• who you’ll tell about the funeral and how.

Funeral costs

Funerals are expensive – the cost can vary depending on where you live and the type of funeral you want. 

Unless the person who died made provision for their funeral, family or friends will usually pay for it. Costs can usually be reclaimed from the estate if there’s enough money to cover it – see below. If there isn’t enough money to pay for the funeral and there are no relatives or friends who can arrange the funeral, the local council or hospital can arrange a simple public health funeral. Be aware that you won't have much control over a public health funeral – you won't be able to choose where or when it takes place, for example.

If your income is low, you might be able to get a Funeral Expenses Payment to help meet the costs of the funeral. In Scotland, this is known as a Funeral Support Payment.

You’ll usually have to pay back any money you’re awarded from the estate of the person who died. To qualify, you’ll need to:

• apply for it within six months of the funeral
• be receiving certain benefits (for a full list of qualifying benefits, visit Gov.uk)
• meet rules about how you’re related to the person who died (see Gov.uk for details).

Funeral Expenses Payments can only be used to cover certain funeral costs, and the amount you can get varies. Find out more at Gov.uk and mygov.scot.

You may also be able to get a budgeting loan from the Social Fund (or budgeting advance if you’re getting Universal Credit) or a grant from a charity. For more information, see our factsheet Extra help with essential costs if you're on a low income, or contact our Helpline.

To keep costs down, you could consider direct burial or direct cremation, although not all funeral directors offer this option. There will be no ceremony, viewing, hearse, or procession to the funeral. The body will be collected and cremated or buried by the funeral directors at a less popular time of day. This option won’t feel right to everyone, but you could still choose to hold a memorial service at a later date in a way that might suit you better than a funeral.

MoneyHelper and The Natural Death Centre have more tips on keeping the cost of a funeral down.
 

Emotions may be running high after a death, and there can be disagreements among the family and friends of the person who died. 

It’s important to talk openly and give everyone a chance to express how they’re feeling. Don’t make assumptions about what others think. It might seem obvious to you that the funeral and other arrangements will be organised in a particular way, but others may not share your views. Make sure to discuss big decisions before you act.
 

When someone dies, their estate will need to be sorted out. The estate is everything left by them, including property, money and other possessions, any money they’re owed and their debts.

If there’s a will

If there’s a will, this should say who the executor is and how the estate should be divided. In England and Wales, the executor may need to apply for probate. Visit Gov.uk for more information about probate and how to apply. You may want to consider hiring a probate and estate specialist – MoneyHelper has more information.

In Scotland, if someone is named as executor in the will, they can apply for confirmation (confirmation is the authority to deal with the estate of someone who has died). There is no need to also apply for a Bond of Caution unless you are the spouse or civil partner of the person who died and the estate’s value is greater than your prior rights. You can find more information about prior rights at gov.scot.

If there isn’t a will

In England and Wales

If there isn’t a will, there won’t be a named executor so an administrator will be appointed instead. If you’re the person’s next of kin, you may be able to apply to be the administrator. There is a strict order of priority for who can do this – read the government guidance on who can apply for probate for more information. 

The administrator should apply for letters of administration. Visit Gov.uk for more information on this process. 

In Scotland

In Scotland, even if there isn’t a will or a named executor, you can still apply for confirmation. However, you may need to apply for a Bond of Caution, as an insurance policy.

A Bond of Caution protects the estate – for example, it protects against other people obtaining confirmation when they are not entitled to do so. A Bond of Caution isn’t necessary if the total value of the estate is below £36,000 (this is known as a small estate). For more information, visit the website for the Office of the Public Guardian.

Valuing the estate and Inheritance Tax

Before you can apply for probate or confirmation, you’ll need to value the estate. You can then work out whether Inheritance Tax needs to be paid.

Inheritance Tax doesn’t need to be paid if, for example:

• the entire estate is left to a surviving spouse or civil partner. 
• the estate is valued at £325,000 or below
• you leave anything over £325,000 to a charity, or a spouse or civil partner.

There are other reasons you might not have to pay.

If you do have to pay Inheritance Tax, the value of the estate will affect what you have to pay. However, this is a complicated area, so seek advice. The Inheritance Tax helpline (0300 123 1072) can provide more information or visit Gov.uk.

Inheritance Tax is usually charged at 40% on the part of the estate that’s above the threshold of £325,000. It should usually be paid within six months of the end of the month that the person died in. After that you’ll be charged interest. At least some of it will need to be paid before probate or letters of administration can be granted.

If the value of the estate is less than £5,000, or if the person who died only had savings or shared money or property with others, you will likely not need to apply for probate or confirmation. You can check this by contacting the bank and mortgage company of the person who died.

Once probate or confirmation has been granted

Once you’ve been granted probate (or confirmation in Scotland), you’ll need to contact the organisations that hold the assets of the person who died – for example, their bank, building society, or pension provider. They will then release the assets. They’ll ask you for a copy of the grant of probate or letters or grant of administration.

It’s usually a good idea to set up a separate executor’s bank account in which to collect the assets. You’ll then need to:

• pay any debts, including tax owed and outstanding bills
• distribute the estate, according to the will, or intestacy rules if there is no will
• prepare the estate accounts. They will need to be signed off by you and the main beneficiaries.