Most deaths are registered by a relative of the deceased.

If the death occurred in a house, hospital or elderly people home and there are no relatives available to do the registration, the Registrar would normally allow one of the following to register (in order of preference):

  • Someone present at the death
  • An occupant of the house/official from the hospital in which the death occurred.
  • The person making the arrangements with the funeral directors.

If the death occurred elsewhere and there are no relatives available to do the registration, the registrar would normally accept one of the following to register:

  • Someone present at the death
  • The person who found the body
  • The person in charge of the body
  • The person making the arrangements with the funeral directors

If you want to use the ‘Tell Us Once’ service, you must be either:

  • the next of kin, or
  • the person dealing with the deceased’s estate, or
  • a person with the permission from either of the above.

If the deceased person lived outside of Somerset we will advise you at your appointment if government services within their local area are part of this notification service.