What to Do after a Death in the UK
Bereavement is among the most difficult things that most of us go through. Coming to terms with the loss can take time, and everyone recovers at a different pace. To make life that little bit more complicated, you may find that you have to go through a series of technical processes, many of which you might not have been prepared for. Let’s look at a few of them.
Register the Death
You’ll have five days to register the death (this extends to eight days in Scotland). Having done this, you’ll be issued a certificate for burial, which can be presented to the funeral director. Without this certificate, you won’t be able to proceed with the funeral.
Arrange the Funeral and Choose the Type
You can expect to pay several thousand pounds for a cremation, and slightly more for a burial. You can either pay for a funeral director to arrange everything, or you can take care of it yourself. Bear in mind that you might not be in a fit emotional state to handle everything yourself – and that funeral directors have expertise and experience that you probably won’t be able to rival.
Your funeral director should come from either the National Association of Funeral Directors, or the National Society of Allied and Independent Funeral Directors. You’ll generally want to go for either a religious or non-religious funeral, depending on the wishes of the person to whom you’re saying goodbye.
Tells the government about the death, and check if you’re entitled to bereavement benefit
Bereavement can severely impact your ability to earn a living. You might find yourself unable to come into work. You might also find that you’re still getting letters from the DWP addressed to the deceased. You can sort this out with a single phone call and apply for bereavement benefits or a one-off sum for the funeral at the same time.
Apply for probate and check if you need to pay inheritance tax
If there’s an estate to pass on, then you’ll need to apply for probate. This means estimating the value of the estate. Probate is sometimes not needed, especially if the deceased only had savings and no fixed assets – or if they jointly owned their assets with another person.
If you need help settling the tax, then you can apply for an inheritance tax loan. This is an effective way of spreading the cost over a longer period.
