We are always there to offer help and advice.

We provide an emergency service to you twenty-four hours a day 365 days a year.
Below if some information on what to do when death occurs but please do contact us if you have any questions.

If someone passes away at home or in a nursing home, you will initially need to call the doctors surgery, hospice support or 111. Once a doctor or nurse has certified that the persons has passed away, they can be taken into the care of the funeral director. It will then be the doctors surgery that will need to be contacted to start the process of obtaining the death certificate.

If someone passes away in a hospital the person will remain in the care of the hospital until they can release them into the funeral director’s care. It will be the hospital bereavement office that will need to be contacted to start the process of obtaining the death certificate.

If someone passes away unexpectedly and are not in hospital, they will be taken into the care of the coroners contracted funeral director whilst the coroner completes their investigation into the cause of death. Once they have finished, they will release the person into the care of your chosen funeral director.

The process of obtaining the death certificate starts with the GP or hospital doctor completing a proposed MCCD form (also know as an interim death certificate) to the local medical examiners office. A medical examiner will review the certificate and have a phone conversation with the next-of-kin to make sure there are no concerns before approving the MCCD form and sending it on to the Registrars Service. Once the registrars have received this you can contact them to arrange a face-to-face appointment where they will issue you with official death certificates and a green form. The green form is what the funeral director will need to proceed with funeral arrangements.

The coroner’s office may need to be involved in clarifying the cause of death for expected and unexpected deaths. This could be for just a discussion with the doctor, the requirement of a post-mortem or in some cases a further inquest. It is best to speak to your funeral director for advice on the procedure that will follow in each instance. The coroner’s involvement can cause a delay in the funeral arrangements being made.

Please see our useful contact page for the phone numbers for Essex Registration Service and Essex Coroner Service.