Death certificate

A death certificate is a certified copy of the entry in the death register, issued once the death has been registered, and banks, insurers and solicitors ask for it as proof of death. In England and Wales a copy costs £12.50; Scotland and Northern Ireland keep their own registers and set their own fees. It is a different document from the doctor’s medical certificate of cause of death.

When you will need one

Executors and next of kin use it to close bank accounts, cancel contracts, claim on life insurance and apply for probate. Most organisations want to see an original rather than a photocopy, so buy several certified copies while you are at the register office. Six is a normal number, and copies ordered later take days to arrive.

Who issues it

The registrar issues it at the registration appointment. Later copies come from the central offices: the General Register Office (GRO) in England and Wales, National Records of Scotland, and GRONI in Northern Ireland. The cause of death printed on it comes from the doctor’s medical certificate of cause of death.

What it costs

• England and Wales: £12.50 a copy from the GRO, sent within 4 days. Without the GRO index reference number a £3.50 search fee is added, and the copy is sent within 15 working days. The priority service costs £38.50 and sends it the next working day.
• Scotland: at the registration the registrar gives you a certificate of registration of death and a shorter abbreviated copy, both free.
• Northern Ireland: £8.00 a copy at the registration. Ordered afterwards from GRONI, the first copy costs £15.00 and each extra copy bought with it costs £8.00.

Scotland and Northern Ireland also issue a short version of the certificate that leaves out the cause of death.