THE REGISTRAR
Before attending the Registrar, you will need to obtain a certificate from the Doctor who attended the deceased during the last illness. This doctor may be the normal G.P. or a Hospital Doctor. If the death was in a Hospital or Hospice, you will also be given an internal form that is required by our office.

The death must normally be registered in the area where it occurred, not the area of residence. Some Registrars require an appointment. After registration, the Registrar will give you a GREEN CERTIFICATE, which is also required by our office, and a WHITE CERTIFICATE FOR THE DSS. You can also purchase any certificates required for insurance, probate or the release of funds in the estate.

A Bank or a Building Society will normally copy a certificate and hand the original back immediately, an insurance Company can be requested to return any certificate sent to them. The additional certificates are signed by the Registrar and called a ‘Certified Copy of an entry in the Register’. Usually they are a photocopy, and are loosely referred to as either ‘copies’ or ‘death certificates’. They are the only certificates bearing the cause of death and our office does not normally know that information.

Registrars normally read the ‘list of qualified informants’ as an order of precedence, i.e. they may refuse to accept a registration if there is an available informant higher on the list than the person attending.

Please remember that our office require the GREEN CERTIFICATE and, if applicable, the authority from the hospital or hospice. The special white form is for the DSS and the extra copies are for the Bank, Building Society, Probate, Insurance etc.

QUALIFIED INFORMANTS
~ A relative of the deceased present at the time of death.
~ A relative of the deceased in attendance during the last illness.
~ A relative of the deceased residing in the same locality.
~ Any person present at the time of death.
~ The occupier (e.g. Matron or Officer in Charge of a Nursing Home).
~ The person ‘causing the disposal of the body’, ie. an executor, solicitor or friend making the funeral arrangements in the absence of any relatives.
~ N.B. The Registrar will NOT accept the Funeral Director as the informant.

INFORMATION REQUIRED BY THE REGISTRAR
~ Date and place of death.
~ The deceased’s address.
~ Their full names and, if applicable, a female’s maiden name.
~ Their date and place of birth.
~ Their occupation and the occupation of any spouse.
~ If they were receiving any pension or allowance from public funds.
~ If married, the date of birth of the surviving Widow or Widower.
While a birth certificate or marriage certificate will help to provide the above information, no formal proof is required and the Registrar will accept the word of the informant on any information provided.