What to do when someone dies at home in the UK: the first hours and days
Who to call when someone dies at home, what happens if the death was expected or unexpected, when the funeral director comes and what to do in the first days.
What to do when someone dies at home in the first hour
The first thing to work out is whether the death was expected, because that decides who you call. If the person was receiving end of life care and their doctors had told the family that death was likely, it is not an emergency and there is no need to dial 999. You call the GP surgery if it is open, or NHS 111 if it is not, and ask for someone to come to the house to confirm the death. If the death was sudden, or you are not sure whether the person has died, you call 999 straight away, and the call handler will talk you through what to do while the ambulance is on its way.
Once you have made that first call, very little else has to happen quickly. Most of the steps in the first day can wait until you have had time to sit with the person or ring family, and the professionals who arrive will explain what comes next.
Who do you call if the death was expected?
For an expected death, you call the person's GP surgery during opening hours and ask for a doctor to visit the home to confirm the death, or NHS 111 outside those hours and ask for a suitable healthcare professional to visit. That is the advice in the Royal Free London NHS leaflet on expected deaths at home, which also notes that a district nurse or palliative care nurse specialist may verify the death rather than a doctor. If a district nursing team or hospice team was already visiting, they will often have left a number to call day or night, and Kingston and Richmond NHS Foundation Trust tells families to ring the district nurse or GP "as soon as you feel able (day or night)".
If a care plan, a DNACPR form or end of life medicines are in the house, keep them where they can be seen. NHS England's London guidance on deaths in the community describes paperwork of this kind as the evidence that helps an ambulance crew or police officer recognise that a death was expected, should either of them be called.
What happens if the death was unexpected?
If the death was sudden or the cause is not known, you call 999, and the ambulance crew will either try to resuscitate the person or confirm that they have died. The police are then informed, which is routine rather than a sign that anyone is under suspicion. The North West Ambulance Service bereavement guide explains that police may attend sudden or unexpected deaths outside a hospital because they act as the initial representatives of the coroner, and NHS England's London guidance says officers establish who has died, when, where and in what circumstances, and report that to the coroner.
The person is then usually taken to a mortuary by a funeral director acting for the coroner, and the London guidance says the police stay with them until that happens. The Ministry of Justice guide to coroner services is clear that a coroner's investigation is different from a criminal investigation and does not mean there is suspicion of wrongdoing. In many cases the coroner's early enquiries, which usually include speaking to the person's GP, show that the death was from natural causes, and the coroner then has no further role.
Where the cause is still unclear, the coroner may decide a post-mortem examination is needed, and GOV.UK's guidance on deaths reported to a coroner explains that families cannot object to a coroner's post-mortem, although if you ask, the coroner must tell you when and where it will take place. The coroner releases the person for the funeral once the examinations are complete, and if that cannot happen within 28 days the coroner must tell the next of kin why. The Coroners' Courts Support Service offers free, independent support on 0300 111 2141 (Monday to Friday 9am to 7pm, Saturday 9am to 2pm).
What is the difference between verifying and certifying a death?
Verification confirms that the person has died, whereas certification records why they died, and the two are done by different people at different times. A GP, a trained nurse or an ambulance clinician can verify the death at the house and complete a verification form, which is what allows a funeral director to collect the person. The medical certificate of cause of death (MCCD) is completed later by a doctor who attended the person during their life, and the Royal Free leaflet asks families to call the GP practice within one working day of the death so the certificate can be written.
In England and Wales, that certificate is then scrutinised by a medical examiner, a senior doctor who was not involved in the person's care. This has been a legal requirement for every death not referred to a coroner since 9 September 2024, according to the Department of Health and Social Care's overview of the death certification reforms, and the medical examiner's office sends the certificate to the registrar rather than the family. GOV.UK says the office will contact you to explain the cause of death and answer questions about it or about the care the person received, which is voluntary, so you do not have to speak to them if you would rather not. GOV.UK also warns that the doctor confirming the death and contacting the medical examiner can take a few days.
When can the funeral director take the person?
After an expected death, the funeral director can collect the person as soon as the death has been verified, but there is no requirement to call them straight away. Kingston and Richmond's guidance tells families to contact a funeral director "when you feel ready", and says collection then usually happens within a few hours. Many families use the time to sit with the person or to let relatives come and say goodbye, and NHS England's London guidance confirms that the family arranges the funeral director of their choice once the death has been verified.
If the person is staying at home for a while, the Royal Free leaflet suggests turning off the central heating in that part of the house to keep the room cool. If the family's faith calls for burial within 24 hours, the same leaflet suggests raising this with the GP and palliative care team in advance, so that verification and paperwork can move quickly, and our guide to Islamic funerals and burial timings covers that process in more detail. After an unexpected death the choice is different, because the coroner's contracted funeral director takes the person to the mortuary first, and your own funeral director collects them once the coroner releases them.
What if someone dies at night or at the weekend?
An expected death at night or at the weekend is handled through NHS 111, which can arrange for a doctor or nurse to come and verify the death. The visit is not always immediate, and NHS England's guidance for London says that where no qualified person is already present and the person's own GP is unavailable, an out-of-hours visit to verify the death there may take between two and six hours depending on workload, although waits elsewhere will depend on local services. The same guidance notes that out-of-hours doctors cannot issue the medical certificate of cause of death, which is why the GP practice is contacted again on the next working day.
In Scotland, the Scottish Government's bereavement guidance, last revised in 2016, says that a sudden and unexpected death at night should be reported at once, but that otherwise you can call the doctor in the morning. An unexpected death is always a 999 call, whatever the hour.
What practical things need doing at home in the first few days?
Medical equipment and medicines are usually the first practical things to deal with. The Royal Free leaflet asks families to leave equipment in place until a healthcare professional advises otherwise, with a syringe pump left until the palliative care team or district nurse collects it (the battery can be removed to silence an alarm), and to take any unused medicines to a pharmacy for safe disposal. The same leaflet says equipment is collected by the district nurse or palliative care team, so if nobody has mentioned a collection it is worth ringing them to arrange one.
If carers were visiting, the care agency or council will need to be told so visits stop, and any pets will need someone to look after them in the first days. If the person lived alone, it makes sense to lock the property, gather spare keys and keep an eye on the post, since letters are often the first record of which banks, insurers and suppliers the person used. Our guide to what to do when someone dies picks up the wider sequence of tasks from here.
When do you need to register the death?
In England and Wales you must wait for the medical examiner's office to confirm that you can register the death, and then GOV.UK says to register within 5 days of that confirmation, including weekends and bank holidays, and to tell the register office straight away if you need longer. Where a coroner is involved the timing and documents can differ, and if there is an inquest the coroner can provide an interim death certificate so that you can start dealing with the estate. Our step-by-step guide to registering a death explains who can register, what information to bring and what the registrar gives you, including the certificate for burial or cremation that the funeral director needs.
When you register, the registrar will usually offer Tell Us Once, which reports the death to most government organisations in one go, and you must use it within 28 days of receiving the reference number. Our guide to Tell Us Once sets out what it covers. Our guide to how many death certificates you need is worth reading before the appointment, because certified copies are bought at registration.
How is it different in Scotland and Northern Ireland?
In Scotland, unexpected and unexplained deaths are investigated by the Procurator Fiscal rather than a coroner. The Scottish Government's guidance on the Procurator Fiscal explains that police provide the information about the circumstances and that, in most cases, early enquiries show the death was from natural causes. The mygov.scot guidance on registering a death says registration is due within 8 days of the death where possible, at any registration office in Scotland, and that some medical certificates are randomly selected for review, which should delay registration by no more than 1 to 3 working days.
In Northern Ireland, nidirect's guidance on a death at home says to call the family doctor during surgery hours or the on-call doctor outside them after an expected death, and 999 after an unexpected one, in which case the police arrange for the person to be moved on behalf of the coroner. A death in Northern Ireland should be registered within 5 days, and Tell Us Once is not available there, so government departments are told separately.
What to do next
For an expected death, call the GP surgery or NHS 111 and ask for the death to be verified; for an unexpected death, call 999.
Call a funeral director when you are ready, or wait for the coroner's officer to explain the next steps if the coroner is involved.
Contact the GP practice on the next working day so the medical certificate can be completed, and expect a call from the medical examiner's office.
Return medicines to a pharmacy, arrange equipment collection and stop any care visits.
Register the death once you are told you can, and use Tell Us Once for government departments.
Tell Us Once deals with the government side, but it does not reach the person's bank, energy supplier, phone provider or insurers, and those accounts carry on until each provider is told. When you reach that stage, Legacy Trail's free notification service can contact private-sector providers on your behalf, and if you are not sure which accounts the person had, our Account Discovery Service searches for them first.
Frequently asked questions
If the death was expected, call NHS 111 and ask for a doctor or nurse to visit to verify the death, then contact the GP practice the next working day about the medical certificate. If the death was sudden or unexplained, call 999 whatever the time.
They usually attend when a death at home was unexpected, because they act on behalf of the coroner and gather information about the circumstances. This is routine and does not mean anyone is suspected of anything. After an expected death that has been verified by a doctor or nurse, the police are not normally involved.
After an expected death, the funeral director you choose collects the person once the death has been verified, at a time that suits you. After an unexpected death, a funeral director contracted by the coroner takes the person to a mortuary, and your own funeral director collects them once the coroner has released them.
Yes. A trained district nurse, palliative care nurse or ambulance clinician can verify that a death has occurred. The medical certificate of the cause of death is a separate document, which is completed by a doctor who attended the person and, in England and Wales, reviewed by a medical examiner.
Only if the death was unexpected, or if you are not sure the person has died. When someone receiving end of life care dies as expected, the right call is to the GP surgery, district nurse or hospice team, or NHS 111 out of hours.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Individual circumstances vary. If you are dealing with an estate, consider taking advice from a solicitor who specialises in probate. For other guidance specific to your circumstances, speak to a funeral director, Citizens Advice, or a regulated financial adviser.