The Government is making changes to the Death Certificate Registration Process. These death certification reforms will become statutory, i.e. mandatory, from 9th September 2024 and will affect all deaths registered in England and Wales.

The current system

When a person dies, one of the first steps is for their representative to obtain a death certificate, or a Medical Certificate Cause of Death (MCCD). In the current system, deaths are either certified by a medical practitioner or by a coroner. It has long been established that deaths can also be certified by a medical examiner, however, this has not been mandatory.

Currently, the attending medical practitioner who writes the MCCD must have attended the deceased during their illness and seen them in either the last 28 days or after death.

The new system: the role of medical examiners

From 9th September this year, several changes are being made to the process of obtaining a MCCD. An independent review will now be needed by a medical examiner for all deaths in England and Wales, without exception. This will apply unless the death has already been referred to a coroner. If an attending medical practitioner is unavailable, the death will be referred to the senior coroner. Should the senior coroner decide not to investigate, they can refer to a medical examiner to certify the death.

Medical examiners will review the cause of death proposed by the attending practitioner, who can complete a MCCD based on their knowledge and belief. The NHS Trusts and GPs will also be able to share all patient records with the medical examiner to allow full scrutiny. A revised MCCD will then replace the existing certificate and will include details of the medical examiner and any additional information regarding the deceased such as their declared ethnicity, medical devices and implants. It is hoped that this will increase the use of mortality data.

In the long term, this may reduce delays for bereaved families as it increases the pool of doctors available to complete the MCCD’s.

The clock to register the death within five days will not start until the registrar receives notification of the cause of death from the medical examiner or a coroner. Previously, the clock started running from the date of death. The deceased’s family (or appropriate person) will be contacted to confirm the MCCD has been sent to the registrar and that they can now register the death.

Individuals who can register the death

The categories of individuals who are allowed to register the death has also been expanded to include the deceased’s partner or representative (to include solicitors). This means that, if you instruct us to act in the administration of the estate, we will be able to register a death for you regardless of whether we are appointed as an Executor. This will help reduce the stress for you at such a difficult time. Other categories of people who can register a death are:

  • A relative
  • A person who was present at the death
  • The occupier of the premises where the death occurred i.e. a Senior Resident Officer or Matron
  • The person arranging the funeral (not the funeral director). This person should only register a death if there are no relatives available

The new regulations

The following regulations set out how the reformed process will work.

In England:

In Wales:

There is also government guidance accompanying the new regulations which explain the legal requirements in each area.

If you have any questions about registering a death, or the probate process, please call the Gepp Solicitors Private Client team on 01245 228125 or email us on privateclientenq@gepp.co.uk.

This is not legal advice; it is intended to provide information of general interest about current legal issues.