Who to notify when someone dies: a complete UK list
This guide lists who to contact when someone dies in the UK, grouped into government, money, utilities, subscriptions and everything else.
Who do you need to notify when someone dies?
You notify the government once through Tell Us Once, then notify every private-sector organisation the person held an account with, one at a time. There is no single switch that turns everything off. Informing of a death is dozens of separate tasks, each with its own form.
Some matter within days, such as anything that keeps taking a payment. Others can wait. The difficulty is rarely any single notification, it is the number of them.
A sensible order to work through it:
Register the death and order certified copies.
Use Tell Us Once within the 28-day window.
Stop anything that keeps charging: subscriptions, memberships and non-essential direct debits.
Notify banks, pension providers and insurers.
Handle utilities and telecoms.
Close or memorialise digital accounts.
How do you report a death to government departments?
You report a death to most government departments with a single Tell Us Once submission, using the reference number the registrar gives you at registration. Tell Us Once is free and takes around 20 minutes, online, by phone or at the register office. You have 28 days to use the reference number (GOV.UK).
One submission covers all of these:
HMRC: income tax and any tax credits, so no separate letter is needed.
The Department for Work and Pensions: the State Pension and benefits, from the same submission.
The Passport Office: the passport record, with no separate contact needed.
The DVLA: the driving licence and vehicle records in the deceased person's name.
The local council: Council Tax, the electoral register, a Blue Badge and council housing.
Public-sector and armed-forces pension schemes: some schemes only, and any scheme not included has to be contacted directly.
If Tell Us Once is not available in your area, tell each body individually. Start at https://www.gov.uk/tell-us-once, and the wider checklist sits at https://www.gov.uk/after-a-death.
Tell Us Once covers no private-sector organisation: not the bank, the energy supplier, the mobile provider, the insurer, the pension company or the streaming subscription. Each needs notifying separately, by you, with a death certificate to hand, and this is where accounts are most often missed.
How do you notify banks, building societies and lenders when someone dies?
You notify each bank, building society and lender separately, with a certified copy of the death certificate, the account details and confirmation that you are authorised to act. Accounts are frozen on notification. Whether funds are released depends on the balance and the provider's own threshold.
Banks and building societies: a certified copy of the death certificate and the account details for current accounts, savings and ISAs; the account is frozen the moment the bank is told. See how to notify a bank after someone dies.
Lloyds Bank and the other large banks: report a death to the bank's bereavement team with the death certificate and account details, or use the Death Notification Service, which is free and notifies several member banks at once. Lloyds Bank is a Death Notification Service member. The service aims to have a member organisation contact the notifier within 10 working days if an account is found (Death Notification Service).
Credit card providers: the death certificate and the card account number; the balance is settled from the estate, not by relatives.
Mortgage lender: the death certificate and the mortgage account number, so the lender can confirm how the outstanding balance is dealt with.
Personal loans, car finance, store cards and buy-now-pay-later accounts: the death certificate and the agreement number; debts are settled from the estate, not inherited, but lenders still need telling.
Who do you notify about pensions, investments and Premium Bonds?
You notify every pension provider, share registrar, investment platform and NS&I separately, because the State Pension is the only one covered by Tell Us Once. Old or forgotten pensions are among the most commonly missed assets, so trace them through the Pension Tracing Service at https://www.gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details.
Workplace and private pension providers: the death certificate and the scheme or policy number; a pension with a nominated beneficiary is paid directly to that person, not into the estate.
The State Pension: covered by Tell Us Once through the Department for Work and Pensions, so no separate notification is needed.
NS&I, including Premium Bonds: a certified copy of the death certificate and the details of the holding, so NS&I can close or transfer it. See what happens to premium bonds when someone dies. Premium Bonds stay eligible for the prize draw for 12 months after the date of death (NS&I). NS&I's standard response time for a bereavement enquiry is 14 days. In 2026, this stretched to around eight weeks while a backlog was cleared (NS&I).
Share registrars and investment platforms: the death certificate and the holding number, so shares or units can be sold or transferred.
Which insurers do you need to tell when someone dies?
You tell every insurer the person held a policy with, starting with motor, because motor cover lapses from the date of death.
Motor insurance: the death certificate and the policy number; cover lapses from the date of death, so a vehicle still in use comes first.
Life insurance: the death certificate and the policy number; the policy may pay out to a named beneficiary or into the estate.
Home and contents insurance: the death certificate, the policy number and the property address, whether the home is kept, sold or handed back.
Travel and private health insurance: the death certificate and the policy number, to cancel cover and stop the renewal.
Who do you contact when someone dies about utilities and household bills?
You contact the gas, electricity and water suppliers and the telecoms and broadband providers directly, because Tell Us Once covers none of them. Council Tax is the exception, handled through the local council.
Gas and electricity suppliers: the date of death, a meter reading and the account number; the account needs updating whether the property is kept, sold or handed back.
Water supplier: the date of death and the account number, so billing moves to whoever is responsible for the property next.
Mobile, landline and broadband providers: the death certificate and the account number; these run on direct debit and keep charging until cancelled, so handle them early.
Council Tax: covered by Tell Us Once, with any discount or exemption applied by the council.
Our guide on energy and water bills in a property they owned covers what changes if they owned rather than rented.
How do you cancel subscriptions and memberships after a death?
You cancel most subscriptions by telling the provider with the account details, then stopping the payment at the bank. These are individually small, collectively easy to overlook, and many keep charging until stopped. Our guide on how to cancel a deceased person’s subscriptions goes platform by platform.
Streaming and software subscriptions: the account email address, plus a death certificate if the provider asks; these renew monthly or annually until cancelled.
Gym and club memberships: the death certificate and the membership number, because most run on direct debit until the operator is told.
Magazine and box subscriptions: the subscriber number and delivery address, to stop the payments and the deliveries.
Charity direct debits: the supporter reference and the date of death, so the charity stops the donation.
Professional bodies: the membership number and the death certificate, to end the membership and any annual fee.
Who else do you need to tell when someone dies?
You also tell the digital platforms holding the person's accounts, and the services that stop post in their name. A deceased person's identity can be a target for fraud, and unwanted post can keep arriving for months.
Email and cloud storage providers: the death certificate and proof that you are authorised to act, so photos and documents can be recovered before the account closes.
Social media platforms: the death certificate and a link to the profile; most major platforms close or memorialise an account on request.
The Bereavement Register, the Death Notification Service and the Deceased Preference Service: the person's name, address and date of death; these are the 3 free services that cut marketing post. See the Bereavement Register.
Royal Mail: the paid redirection option moves post from the property to the person handling the estate. A death is handled through Royal Mail's separate Special Circumstances application, submitted by post or at a Post Office rather than set up online (Royal Mail).
What do you need to send each organisation?
Most providers ask for the same three things: the person's name with the account or policy number, a certified copy of the death certificate, and confirmation that you are authorised to act. Many keep the copy they are sent, so order enough certified copies at registration rather than waiting on one copy to travel between organisations. Our guide on how many death certificates you need sets out how many.
Frequently asked questions
No, Tell Us Once covers government bodies only. Every bank, building society, insurer, utility, pension provider and subscription has to be notified separately by you. The free Death Notification Service is the closest private-sector equivalent, because one form tells several member banks and building societies at once.
You notify the register office first, because registering the death produces the certified copies and the Tell Us Once reference number that every other organisation depends on. After that, stop anything that keeps charging, such as subscriptions and non-essential direct debits, then work through banks, pension providers and insurers.
You report a death to Lloyds Bank through its bereavement team, with a certified copy of the death certificate and the account details. Alternatively, call 0800 015 0012, open 8am to 6pm, seven days a week (Lloyds Bank). Lloyds is also a Death Notification Service member, and the account is frozen once the bank is told.
You notify NS&I directly, because Premium Bonds are not covered by Tell Us Once. NS&I asks for a certified copy of the death certificate and the details of the holding, then closes or transfers it. Premium Bonds are one of the most commonly missed holdings, so check old paperwork and bank statements for them.
There is no single deadline for notifying organisations, but Tell Us Once has its own 28-day window from the date the reference number is issued. Anything that keeps charging should be stopped within days. Motor insurance is urgent, because cover lapses from the date of death.
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.