Advice & Guidance – Paul Walsh Funerals

Our Advice and Guidance

When somebody close to you dies, you can suddenly feel very daunted and overwhelmed. The following information may prove useful to you in the early days after death has occurred.

You may wish to contact us first before informing anyone else and in that case we can guide you through the next steps.

If the Death occurs at home, maybe you have been nursing your loved one through illness, you would in the first instance telephone your GP who would then visit to certify the death and inform you of their intention to issue a medical certificate of the cause of death (usually later on in the day) which you will need to take (via appointment) to your local registrar.

Click here to view the Island’s Registrar’s Office or give them a call on 01983 823233

If death had occurred abroad please contact us and we will guide you on the repatriation process and legalities. (please note that we have fluent translators of French and Spanish upon request).

If the death is referred to the coroner in most cases no medical certificate will be issued. The Coroner’s office on the Island is based at Seaclose Offices, Fairlee Road, Newport, Isle of Wight, PO30 2QS.

At the Hospital

When death occurs in hospital you will be contacted by the hospital staff if you were not present at the time of death. They will give you details of the bereavement officer at the hospital who will deal with the hospital formalities including once again the medical certificate and also the possessions of the deceased. The telephone number for this is 01983 524081.

Unexpected

If the death is unexpected the deceased will be referred to HM Coroner (01983 823010) who will discuss the medical background and the circumstances surrounding the death with the GP of the deceased and decide whether further investigations are needed. If the death is sudden and outside of the Hospital, your loved one will be taken to the Mortuary at St Mary’s Hospital.

Help may be available towards the cost of the Funeral from the Department of Works and Pensions .

The Funeral Payment can help pay for:

burial fees and exclusive rights to burial in a particular plot
cremation fees, including the cost of the doctor’s certificate
up to £700 for funeral expenses, eg funeral director’s fees, flowers, coffin
travel to arrange or go to the funeral
the costs for moving the body within the UK – but only for the part of the journey that’s over 50 miles

If the person who died had a pre-paid funeral plan, you’ll only get help for items not covered by the plan.

You can find the full list of what can be included in the Funeral Payment in claim form SF200.

You may be able to get a £2,000 plus Bereavement Support Payment if your husband, wife or civil partner has died. This is a one-off, tax-free, lump-sum payment.

You may be able to get the Bereavement Payment if when your husband, wife or civil partner died, you were either:

under State Pension age
over State Pension age and your husband, wife or civil partner wasn’t entitled to a State Pension based on their own national insurance contributions

Additionally, your husband, wife or civil partner must have either:

paid enough national insurance contributions
died as a result of an industrial accident or disease

You may also be eligible for Widowed Parents Allowance (if you are bringing up children)

Contact : Bereavement Helpline : 0800 731 0469 or visit www.hmrc.gov.uk

www.cruse.org.uk Cruse Bereavement Care PO Box 800 Richmond, Surrey, TW9 1RG – 020 89399530

www.winstonswish.org ‘Helping Children rebuild their lives after bereavement’ – 0845 2030405

www.tommys.org ‘Helping Families & Researching Stillbirth & Miscarriage’

www.childbereavement.org

www.counselling-directory.org.uk

www.roadpeace.org/why A National Charity & Support for the families of Road Crash Victims