When is a death reported to a coroner?
Medical Examiners, doctors and the police must report deaths to a coroner in certain circumstances.
This includes where:
- no doctor saw the deceased during his or her last illness
- although a doctor attended the deceased during the last illness, the doctor is not able/ available to certify the death
- the cause of death is unknown
- all deaths of children and young people under 18 (even if due to natural causes)
- the death occurred during an operation, before recovery or the effects of an anaesthetic
- the death occurred at work or was due to industrial disease / poisoning
- the death was sudden, unexplained or linked to an accident
- the death was unnatural (including the possibility that the person took their own life)
- the death was due to violence or neglect
- the death was in other suspicious circumstances
- the death occurred in prison, police custody or another type of state detention
If you believe that a death of this kind has not been reported to the coroner, you may report it yourself. You should do this as soon as possible and before the funeral.
You can use the Tell Us Once service to report a death to most government organisations in one go.
What happens when a death is reported to the coroner
Not all deaths are reported to the coroner. In most cases the deceased’s own doctor, or a hospital doctor who has been treating the deceased, is able to give a cause of death and issue a Medical Certificate for Cause of Death (MCCD).
Less than half of all deaths are reported to the coroner but when a death is reported, the coroner will consider the information, conduct initial enquiries in order to decide whether to investigate the death.
The coroner will decide if:
If the coroner decides that the cause of death is clear, the coroner will refer the death to the doctor to complete a Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD).
From 9th September 2024 the MCCD will be issued to the Register Office following Medical Examiner’s scrutiny. Once the registrar receives the MCCD the death can be registered.
The coroner may decide a post-mortem is needed to find out how the person died.
You cannot object to a coroner’s post-mortem, but if asked, the coroner must tell you (and the person’s GP) when and where the examination will take place.
Depending on the results, the coroner will:
- find the death natural and close the case
- continue the investigation process, to obtain further information from doctors or others involved
- open an inquest
For more information, please visit our post-mortem webpage
After the post-mortem
The coroner will release the body for a funeral once they have completed the post-mortem examinations and no further examinations are needed.
An inquest is a fact-finding court hearing about the circumstances of the death.
A coroner must hold an inquest if the:
- cause of death is still unknown
- person might have died a violent or unnatural death
- person might have died in prison or police custody