Register a death

Register the death within 5 days of being contacted. This includes weekends and bank holidays.

If the death occurred in Bournemouth, Christchurch or Poole and the Coroner is not involved, The Medical Certificate of Cause of Death will be electronically scanned directly to us from the Medical Examiner’s office once they have spoken to the family.

Once we have received the relevant documentation, we will contact you to book an appointment. You can choose to go to any of our 3 offices.

In some circumstances, the hospital will book an appointment on your behalf.

If you have not heard from us, this could be that we have not received the necessary paperwork. You will need to check with the Medical Examiners office.

Deaths referred to the coroner

If the doctor has referred the death to the coroner, we are unable to register the death until the coroner has issued the relevant paperwork. Please wait until a coroner's officer contacts you to discuss the death. They will then contact us with your details so that we can call you to book an appointment if this is needed.

If you have not heard from us, this could be that we have not received the necessary paperwork. You will need to check with the Coroner.

Who can register the death

A relative or partner should register the death.

If a relative or partner is unable to register the death, you can if you:

• were there at the time of death
• are a senior administrator from the hospital (if the person died in hospital)
• are the manager of a care home where the person died
• are the occupier of the building where the person died
• are in charge of making funeral arrangements
• are a personal representative of the deceased

Documents needed

To ensure we have the correct information for your appointment, we recommend you bring the deceased’s:

• passport
• birth certificate
• proof of address (for example a utility bill)
• medical card or NHS number
• marriage or civil partnership certificate (if applicable)
• driving licence
• blue badge
• National Insurance Number.

You will need to tell the registrar:

• the person's full name at the time of death
• any names previously used, for example maiden name
• the person's date and place of birth
• their last address
• their occupation
• the full name, date of birth and occupation of a surviving or late spouse or civil partner
• whether they were getting a State Pension or any other benefits.

Tell Us Once service

Through the Tell Us Once service we can help you to report the death to both government and local council departments.

At your appointment we will either give you a unique reference number which you can use to notify different departments, or we will do the whole of the process for you.

You'll need the following details of the person who died:

• date of birth
• National Insurance number
• driving licence number
• vehicle registration number
• passport number
• death certificate

We may also need to know about:

• any benefits or entitlements they were getting, for example State Pension
• their next of kin
• any surviving husband, wife or civil partner and their date of birth
• the person or company dealing with their estate (property, belongings and money), known as their 'executor' or 'administrator'
• any public sector or armed forces pension schemes they were getting or paying in to

You will need permission from the next of kin, the executor, the administrator or anyone who was claiming joint benefits or entitlements with the person who died, before you give their details.

Documents you will get

The Certificate of Burial or Cremation (green form) will be sent directly to the funeral directors.

Death certificates cost £12.50 each and can be paid for by card payment during your appointment, you will be able to take them away with you.

Alternatively, you can order them online.

If the death occurred outside of the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole

Please contact the registration service in the area where the death occurred.

Contact information

For deaths in Bournemouth and Christchurch, please contact us by:

• telephone on 01202 123 777
• email at registrars.mailbox@bcpcouncil.gov.uk

For deaths in Poole, please contact us by:

• telephone on 01202 123 232
• email at registrarsadmin@bcpcouncil.gov.uk