4. Dealing with the Coroner (if applicable

Under certain circumstances, it is a legal requirement to inform the Coroner of a person’s death. For example,

• If a patient dies having had a fall or an accident • If the death was sudden and unexpected • If they had been in hospital for less than 24 hours or had a recent operation • If there is a possibility of it being an unnatural death. If there is a need to contact the Coroner, the Coroner will then decide if the hospital doctor can issue the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death or whether a post-mortem is needed.

If the Coroner requests a post-mortem, your permission is not required. You may then contact the Coroner’s Officers on 01392 225696 for further information. The office is open Monday to Friday 9.00am to 4.00pm.

If a post-mortem is needed, the Coroner will issue a certificate to the Registrar once the cause of death has been established and enquiries are complete. You should then proceed with registering the death as described in Section 9.

It will be necessary to telephone the Registrar in the first instance to ensure that the necessary paperwork has been received from the Coroner prior to making an appointment to register the death.

Please let your funeral director know if a post-mortem is being arranged.

If a post-mortem is not needed, the Coroner will inform the hospital doctor that the medical certificate can be issued. The Bereavement Team will then contact you to arrange registration of the death.