Tell Us Once reports a death to participating government bodies when the person lived in England, Scotland or Wales. Use the registrar’s reference within 28 days of receiving it. It does not notify every private organisation or apply for benefits for you. For a person who lived in Northern Ireland or permanently abroad, use the relevant separate notification routes.
After a death: which notification route do I need?
Task | Route to check |
Participating government bodies | Tell Us Once, if eligible and within the reference window. |
Banks and insurers | Their bereavement teams or a separate service covering participating firms. |
Energy, broadband and other contracts | Each provider; explain whether someone remains in the home. |
A new benefit claim | The benefit’s own application process, separate from reporting the death. |
Is Tell Us Once available in Wales?
Yes, for a person who lived in Wales. GOV.UK provides Welsh-language guidance as well as the English service information. Obtain the reference from the registrar and follow the provided online or telephone route; do not assume the place where the family now lives decides eligibility.
Does Tell Us Once close bank accounts or settle debts?
No. Banks must be contacted separately and decide their own next steps. A separate notification service can reach participating firms, but notification is not the same as closing an account, settling a balance or proving an executor’s authority. Keep the bank’s confirmation and document requests.
Official help and next steps
For eligible UK financial firms, the Death Notification Service explains its separate coverage. Check the participating organisations and keep follow-up requests open. Death Notification Service: coverage and process
A benefit claim has its own eligibility and timing rules, even after government notification. Bereavement Support Payment: check the separate claim
Start the government process from its official guidance: GOV.UK: Tell Us Once and organisations to contact
What should I record after submitting Tell Us Once?
Keep the confirmation safely and note the submission date and the organisations covered by the service in your case. Track later requests from individual departments separately. Do not mark private banks, insurers or energy suppliers as notified just because the government submission is complete.
Example: council and energy bills at the same address
Tell Us Once may inform the local council, but that does not notify the household’s gas or electricity supplier. Record the two tasks separately. If someone still lives at the property, ask the supplier about continuing supply and the account arrangement rather than assuming everything should be cancelled.
A reference number is not evidence that every task is complete
Receiving the reference, submitting the report and responding to follow-up requests are different steps. If the reference has expired or the service cannot be used, follow the official alternative instructions. Do not submit sensitive identifiers through an unrelated website offering to do the same thing.
Choose the next step you need
Banks need their own bereavement notification
Check the executor’s remaining private administration tasks
Government and private notification tracker
Keep the government reference separate from banks, utilities and other private organisations. This worksheet does not send any notification.
Printable PDF · Editable text file
How to use the worksheet
Use one sheet for each case. Mark missing information as open and identify who will follow up. Check the guidance before acting.
Organisation or government service
Official route checked
Reference or safe reminder of where it is stored
Date submitted
Confirmation or outstanding request
Next action and person responsible
Example: Tell Us Once has been completed, but the energy supplier has not been contacted. Add a separate supplier entry and leave it open until that provider confirms the next step. Avoid putting identity documents in a shared tracker.
The next bank step needs its own bereavement process and confirmation. Track bank notifications separately.
What is Tell Us Once and how does it work?
Tell Us Once is run by government so that bereaved families do not have to contact each department separately. GOV.UK describes it as a service that lets you report a death to most government organisations in one go. You give the details once, and the service passes them on to every organisation on its list that needs to know.
It sits naturally alongside registration. When you register the death, the registrar will either give you a unique Tell Us Once reference number or complete the service with you there and then. You can then use it online, or by phone using the number the registrar gives you. GOV.UK also lists Relay UK for people who cannot hear or speak on the phone, and a video relay service for British Sign Language users.
The service is meant to take a weight off your shoulders, not add another deadline to worry about. If you are not ready to do it on the day you register, that is fine, as long as you use the reference number within the 28-day window.
Which organisations does Tell Us Once notify?
According to the GOV.UK Tell Us Once page, the service contacts these government bodies on your behalf:
HMRC, for personal tax and for benefits and credits such as Child Benefit.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), for benefits and entitlements such as Universal Credit or State Pension.
HM Passport Office, to cancel a British passport.
DVLA, to cancel a driving licence, remove the person as the keeper of up to 5 vehicles and end vehicle tax.
The local council, for Housing Benefit, Council Tax Reduction, Blue Badge, council housing and the electoral register.
Veterans UK, for the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme, and Social Security Scotland, for payments such as Scottish Child Payment.
Some public sector pension schemes, including the Armed Forces, Civil Service and Local Government Pension Schemes, NHS Pensions in England and Wales, the Pension Protection Fund and Financial Assistance Scheme, and certain Scottish Public Pension Agency schemes.
That covers most of the official side of a person's life. If they were receiving State Pension or other benefits, notifying DWP early also helps avoid overpayments that would later have to be repaid from the estate.
How do you get a Tell Us Once reference number?
You get the reference number from the registrar, usually at the appointment where you register the death. In England and Wales you register at a register office, and in Scotland at a registration office. Ask about Tell Us Once at the appointment if the registrar does not mention it.
If the death has been reported to a coroner and an inquest is under way, registration can take much longer. In that case GOV.UK explains that you can ask a registrar for a reference number once you have an interim death certificate from the coroner. This means you do not have to wait for the inquest to finish before the government side of things can begin.
What information do you need to use Tell Us Once?
It helps to gather the paperwork before you start, so you can do it in one sitting. The GOV.UK checklist asks for:
the Tell Us Once reference number
the person's surname and date of death
the name, address and contact details of the executor or administrator
the surviving spouse or civil partner's name, address, phone number, and National Insurance number or date of birth (or the next of kin's details if there is no spouse or civil partner who can act)
the name and address of any hospital, nursing home, care home or hospice involved
Depending on the person's circumstances, you may also be asked for their passport details, driving licence number, vehicle registration numbers, Blue Badge number, benefit and pension information, and National Insurance number. GOV.UK notes that you must have permission from the relevant people before you give their details, so check with a surviving partner or the executor first if you are not that person yourself.
What does Tell Us Once not cover?
This is the part that catches many families out. Tell Us Once only covers government organisations. GOV.UK lists the people and organisations you still need to contact yourself:
banks, building societies, mortgage providers and insurance companies
utility companies, landlords, housing associations and other companies the person had contracts with
personal and workplace pension schemes, unless they are one of the public sector schemes listed above
HMRC for business taxes such as VAT, and the Student Loans Company if they had a student loan
DVLA again if you sell a vehicle, or keep and tax it in your own name
For banks, building societies and many insurers there is a separate, independent service called the Death Notification Service. Its own FAQ explains that it is not linked to Tell Us Once and is designed to be used alongside it. We explain how it works in our guide to closing a bank account when someone dies. For private and workplace pensions, our guide to what happens to a pension when someone dies walks through who to contact.
Can you use Tell Us Once in Northern Ireland or if the person lived abroad?
Tell Us Once is available if the person lived in England, Scotland or Wales, including when they died while temporarily abroad, for example on holiday. According to GOV.UK, you cannot use it if the person lived in Northern Ireland or permanently abroad.
In Northern Ireland, the Department for Communities runs a Bereavement Service for reporting the death of someone who was receiving social security benefits, State Pension or Pension Credit. It records the date of death, tells each office that paid a benefit, and checks whether you may be able to claim Bereavement Support Payment, a Funeral Expenses Payment or a Child Funeral Fund payment. Other organisations, such as HM Passport Office and DVLA, need to be contacted separately.
What if the 28 days pass or you cannot use Tell Us Once?
If you do not use the service, you must tell the relevant organisations yourself. GOV.UK has a dedicated page on reporting a death without a Tell Us Once reference number. The most important calls are usually to HMRC's Bereavement Helpline and to the DWP Bereavement Service, which cancels benefits including State Pension and checks whether you can get help with funeral costs. GOV.UK lists the DWP Bereavement Service number as 0800 151 2012, open Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, with a Welsh language line on 0800 731 0453.
The same page notes that a death of a child or a parent must be reported to the Child Benefit Office within 8 weeks. Contacting organisations separately is the official alternative, but their own deadlines, benefit rules and evidence requirements still apply. It may help to keep a simple list of who you have called, the date and any reference numbers they give you.
Utilities need a separate notification
Keep a separate supplier list after using Tell Us Once. A government notification does not settle an energy account.
British Gas: use its official bereavement support route to discuss the account and property situation.
Octopus Energy: its bereavement page offers a notification service and a direct-contact alternative.
For each supplier record: date contacted, reference, requested documents, current occupier and next agreed action.
Mark a notification as confirmed only when the supplier acknowledges it; track final bills separately.
Tell each supplier whether someone still lives at the property. Do not assume that cancelling a payment also closes the account or safely ends the supply.
Use the wider first-steps guide for family administration and the probate property guide for an empty home.
Frequently asked questions: Tell Us Once
How long is a Tell Us Once reference number valid?
You must use the service within 28 days of getting your unique reference number, according to GOV.UK. If that window passes, contact the organisations yourself using the GOV.UK guidance on reporting a death without Tell Us Once.
Does Tell Us Once tell the bank about a death?
No. Tell Us Once only notifies government organisations. Banks, building societies, insurers, utility companies and private pension providers need to be told separately, and the Death Notification Service can help you reach many banks and insurers at once.
Can I use Tell Us Once by phone?
Yes. As well as the online service, you can use Tell Us Once by phone using the number the registrar gives you. Relay UK and a British Sign Language video relay service are also available.
Does Tell Us Once apply for Bereavement Support Payment?
Tell Us Once tells DWP about the death, but it is not a benefit claim in itself. If your partner has died, read our guide to Bereavement Support Payment to check whether you can claim and how.
How Solace Care can help
Availability: These guides are freely accessible. The Solace platform currently supports Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark and the Netherlands. UK-specific features and legal document templates are not yet confirmed. Before signing up, contact support@solace.care to check access and which features are suitable for you.
Use the free tracker to separate submitted notifications from confirmed replies. If you want additional app support, ask support@solace.care which UK features are available before you create an account.
Would you prefer to follow news by email? Open the optional newsletter form. Subscribing does not create an app account; this guide remains freely accessible.
