Coroners - Sudden death investigations
Bury, Rochdale and Oldham
The main duty of a coroner is to enquire into sudden or
unexplained deaths usually by having a post-mortem examination
made, followed by an inquest if the cause of death is not
natural.
Reporting the death
In any of the following circumstances the doctor may report the
death to the coroner.
- An accident or injury
- An industrial disease
- During a surgical operation
- Before recovery from an anaesthetic
- If the cause of death is unknown
- The death was sudden and unexplained, for instance, a sudden
infant death (cot death)
You will be advised if the death has to be reported to the
Coroner, in which case the death cannot be registered nor the
funeral take place, without the Coroner's authorisation. Where a
death is reported to the Coroner, the Coroner's Office will contact
the relatives.
A post-mortem examination
A coroner can order a post-mortem examination without getting
the relative's permission. This examination will ascertain the
cause of death. He may also wish to hold an investigation into
circumstances leading up to a death. (This is called an inquest).
When an inquest is called, the Coroner's Office will contact the
relatives. This should not cause undue distress as it is a legal
formality.
In such cases the death certificate will be issued direct to you
from the Coroner's Office and the relatives must then go to the
Registrar to register the death. When an inquest is to be held, the
death cannot be registered until the conclusion of the inquest, but
a certificate will normally be issued at the opening of the inquest
to allow the funeral to take place.
The office of HM Coroner is an ancient one, dating back at least
to 1194. Their duties and responsibilities are now governed in the
main by the Coroners Act 1988.