What to do when
someone dies:
the practical first steps

Register the death within five days

In England and Wales, a death must be registered within five days of the date of death, unless the coroner is involved. You register at the Register Office for the district in which the death occurred - not necessarily where the person lived. The GP or hospital will issue a Medical Certificate of Cause of Death, which you take to the registrar along with the deceased's birth certificate, marriage certificate (if applicable), NHS number, and passport if available.

At registration, you will receive the death certificate - a certified copy of the entry in the register. Order multiple copies at this stage. Banks, insurers, pension providers, HMRC, and the probate registry will each require an original certified copy, and obtaining additional copies later is more expensive and time-consuming.

Use the Tell Us Once service

The Tell Us Once service allows you to notify most government departments of a death in a single step. It covers HMRC, the DVLA, the passport office, the Department for Work and Pensions, and local authorities. The registrar will explain how to use it when you register the death. It does not cover private organisations - banks, pension providers, insurers, and utilities must each be notified separately.

Locate the Will

As soon as practically possible, locate the original Will. Check with the deceased's solicitor or estate planner first - many practitioners store original Wills on behalf of clients. Also check at home: a fireproof safe, a filing cabinet, or with a trusted family member.

The Will nominates the executor - the person with legal authority to administer the estate. Until the Will is found and the executor identified, no one has formal authority to act. If you cannot locate a Will, you can search the National Will Register and apply to the Probate Registry for further guidance.

Secure assets and property

The executor has a duty to protect the estate from the date of death. If the deceased lived alone, the property needs to be secured - locks changed if keys are in circulation, mail redirected, and perishables removed. Valuables should be documented and, where appropriate, moved to a secure location.

Home insurance is a particular concern. Most policies will not cover an unoccupied property beyond 30 or 60 days without a specific unoccupied property endorsement. Notify the insurer immediately of the death and the property's vacant status. Failure to do so can void the policy entirely.

Bank accounts and frozen assets

On death, all accounts held in the deceased's sole name are frozen. No withdrawals can be made, and no direct debits will be processed. Joint accounts typically pass to the surviving account holder automatically and are not affected in the same way.

The executor's ability to access or close sole accounts is usually limited until probate has been granted, although banks may release funds for funeral expenses, IHT or small balances depending on their own procedures.

Notify pension providers and insurers

Pension funds, life insurance policies, and death-in-service benefits are often dealt with outside the estate - they may have nominated beneficiaries who receive the funds directly, bypassing probate. Notify providers promptly and ask for claim forms. The pension provider will have discretion in how to distribute a pension fund where no nomination is in place, so acting quickly and providing relevant information helps.

Applying for a Grant of Probate

If the estate includes property, significant bank balances, or investments, a Grant of Probate will almost certainly be required before institutions will release funds. The executor applies to the Probate Registry, submitting the original Will and the death certificate. The estate must be valued, and depending on the size and complexity of the estate, information may need to be reported to HMRC.

The process takes several months from application to grant. Once issued, the Grant of Probate is the legal authority the executor needs to collect in assets, deal with property, and ultimately distribute the estate.

Inheritance tax: the six-month deadline

The available IHT threshold depends on the circumstances, including spouse/civil partner exemptions, transferable allowances and whether the residence nil-rate band applies.

If IHT is due, it must be paid to HMRC within six months of the end of the month in which the death occurred. Interest accrues on any amount unpaid after that point. The Grant of Probate will not be issued until HMRC confirms that tax has been paid or that none is due - which creates a practical problem, since you often cannot access the estate's funds until the Grant is issued.

Where the estate includes property that cannot be sold quickly, a Direct Payment Scheme allows IHT to be paid from bank accounts before probate is granted. Instalments can be agreed for IHT attributable to property, though interest applies. Planning for this timing pressure is one of the most practically important aspects of estate administration.

Collect in the estate, pay debts, then distribute

Once the Grant of Probate is issued, the executor can collect in all assets - closing bank accounts, selling investments, dealing with property. Before distributing anything to beneficiaries, all debts must be paid: the funeral bill, outstanding taxes, credit cards, mortgages, and any other liabilities. Distributing before clearing debts makes the executor personally liable for any shortfall.

After debts and costs are cleared, the residue is distributed according to the Will. Specific legacies - cash gifts or particular items - are dealt with first. The residue then passes to whoever the Will directs.

If there is no Will: Letters of Administration

Where someone dies without a Will, there is no executor and no Grant of Probate. Instead, a family member - usually the closest surviving relative under the intestacy rules - must apply to the Probate Registry for a Grant of Letters of Administration. This authorises them to administer the estate as administrator, following the intestacy rules rather than any expressed wishes.

The process is similar to probate in practical terms, but without the Will's clarity about who inherits and in what proportions. Intestate estates are frequently more complicated to administer, take longer to resolve, and can generate family conflict where the outcome of the intestacy rules does not match what anyone expected or wanted.

A well-drafted Will makes this process simpler for everyone - and it is one of the most concrete gifts you can leave the people who will have to deal with it.