Help & Advice

1. If they have passed away at home, you should think about contacting your loved ones doctor/GP Surgery to inform them of their passing. If applicable you may also need to consider contacting adult services, social services, carers and of course friends and family members.

2. If your loved one has passed away at a care home, or their home and their passing was to be expected, you should contact their allocated doctor followed by your chosen Funeral Director who will then be able to assist brining the deceased into their care.

3. You can usually contact your chosen Funeral Director straight away who can start to build up an arrangement file for your loved ones funeral. At this stage, it is likely that the Funeral Director will be in a position to come out and collect your loved one. If they have passed away in hospital, the Funeral Director will have to wait until the medical certificate has been completed before the deceased can leave the care of the hospital/hospice.

4. The doctor will be responsible for writing a medical certificate which indicates the cause of death. Once this has been completed by the doctor, the certificate is usually passed across to your local civic centre or city hall. Once they have received this you can then register your loved ones death by contacting the registrar of births, deaths and marriages where you will be allocated an appointment.

5. At this point, your Funeral Director will want to meet with you to discuss the arrangements and to help give you an understanding on what decisions you’ll need to make going forward but don’t worry, our Funeral Directors will help you guide you in order to make those important decisions, whether that be relating to the service type, documentation, cost or even the date and time of service and what you may require to make their send off extra special or personal to their wishes.

6. Your Funeral Director will bring all of the relevant documents for you to sign. Please make sure you understand what you are signing for and understand what costs are involved. At Fairways, we will leave you with a full written estimate of charges so you know what to expect.

7. If your loved one has a will in place, you may need to seek support from a third party such as a solicitor who can ensure that their will is executed safely and professionally which ensures your loved ones wishes have been adhered too.

8. You should also think about getting in touch with your loved ones bank or building society to inform them of their passing as well as other organisations such as the DVLA, Housing Associations, Landlords, Council tax and other utility providers. Some of these organisations may request to see a copy of the death certificate. You will be given the opportunity to obtain death certificates upon registering the death.

The Samaritans Tel:

Fairways Funeral Directors,
13 Pennywell Shopping Centre,
Pennywell,
Sunderland,
SR4 9AR