Informing other organisations

When someone has died, there are a lot of people who need to be told, at a time when you probably feel least like doing it.

Our Registration Service provides a service which we hope will make things easier for you. This service means that at the end of your appointment when you tell us about a death, we can then register the details with the Tell us Once – GOV.UK service. We will give you a unique reference number which will enable you securely to pass information about a death direct to other public sector organisations.

This service is free of charge and can be done either online or by using a dedicated phone line, at any time up to 28 days after the unique reference number has been issued. The registrar will give you information about how to do this. 

This short video explains more about the Tell Us Once service.

Documents you will need

If you wish to use the Tell us Once – GOV.UK service, you will need the following documents belonging to the deceased person

• Passport
• Driving Licence
• National Insurance Number
• Blue Badge
• Concessionary bus pass
• Public sector pensions details

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.

Who can be contacted

All the organisations will use the information to update their records within 15 days. They treat all your information securely, sensitively and in accordance with the law.

The organisations and services include:

Council Services

• Adult Social Care
• Blue badges
• Children’s services
• Collection of payment for council services
• Council tax
• Council tax benefit
• Electoral services
• Housing benefits
• Libraries
• Concessionary travel
• Certain public sector pensions
• Local authority pension

Identity and Passport Service

• Passport cancellation

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency

• Driving licence cancellation

Department for Work and Pensions

• Pension, disability and carers service
• Jobcentre Plus
• Overseas health team

Ministry of Defence, Service Personnel and Veterans Agency

• War Pensions Scheme

HM Revenue and Customs

• Child benefit
• Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit
• Personal taxation

This list is subject to change and you can find the most updated list on the Tell Us Once – GOV.UK website.

How to book

If the death took place in Somerset, you will need to make an appointment to register in one of our offices.

To make an appointment to register a death please phone 01823 282251 or email: somersetregistrations@somerset.gov.uk.

Appointments to register a death are normally allocated 45 minutes.

If the death took place outside Somerset, it should be registered at the Register Office for the district in which the death occurred. If you cannot get there, you can register the death ‘by declaration’ at any Register Office in England and Wales. This means that the details you give to the registrar will be sent to the correct district to be registered.

In some circumstances, the death will have been reported to the coroner. The registrar must receive documents from the coroner before the death can be registered.

You should only make provisional arrangements for a funeral until authority for the funeral has been issued, either by a registrar or the coroner.