The First Week After a Death: What Needs Doing

The first day or two

What happens first depends on where and how the person died. In a hospital, nursing home or hospice facility, staff handle the medical side and will ask which funeral home to contact. You can usually ask for some quiet time before anyone is called.

If the death happened at home and was unexpected, dial 911. If it was expected and hospice was involved, phone the hospice nurse, who can confirm the death and guide you. Either way, ask for a legal pronouncement of death if one has not already been made. Sometimes a medical examiner or coroner becomes involved; they will explain what that means for timing.

1. Tell the closest family and friends. Ask one or two people to phone everyone else, so you are not repeating difficult news all day.
2. Look for written wishes. Before arranging anything, check for a will, a letter about funeral preferences, an organ donor card or a prepaid funeral contract. Such papers are often kept in a desk drawer, filing cabinet, fireproof box or home safe.
3. Choose a funeral home or cremation provider. They collect the body and help with much of the paperwork that follows.
4. Secure the house and vehicle. If nobody is living there, lock up, gather spare keys, jewelry and cash, and arrange care for pets and houseplants. Empty the refrigerator of perishable food if it will be a while before anyone returns.
5. Start writing things down. One spiral notebook or a phone memo is enough: names, phone numbers, dates and reference numbers. You will be asked for them again.

A printed first-week checklist can help here. It sets out these early tasks in sequence with boxes to tick, plus space for the funeral home, the executor and where the will is kept. Nobody expects it completed in a day.

Arranging the funeral

Arrangements are normally made by the next of kin, or by whichever relative the family agrees should lead. If the person left instructions or paid for a plan in advance, follow them where possible, and bring any contract to the first meeting.

You have consumer protections here. Under the FTC Funeral Rule, providers must give you an itemized price list you can keep, must quote prices by phone when asked, and must let you pick only the goods and services you want. Nobody can require you to buy a package. Comparing two or three providers is entirely reasonable, even under time pressure.

Some practical points families find helpful:

• Bring a companion to the arrangements meeting. A second person can take notes and raise questions you might miss.
• Get the total cost in writing, including what is covered and what is extra, such as flowers, printed programs, a hearse, transport from another city or cemetery fees.
• Ask whether the funeral home will order death certificates, and how many they recommend.
• Keep every receipt. Reasonable funeral expenses are often reimbursed from the estate later, and the executor will need proof.
• If money is tight, ask about direct cremation or a simple graveside service, and which items your state actually requires.
• Decide who will write the obituary, deliver a eulogy or serve as pallbearers, and whether relatives flying in need hotel rooms. Choices about embalming, a casket or urn, and a public visitation can be made calmly once costs are clear.

If the person served in the military, mention it at the first meeting. Specific burial benefits apply, described below.

Death certificates

Nearly every agency, lender or insurer you approach will want proof, and many want a certified copy to keep. Certified copies come from the vital records office of the state where the death occurred, not necessarily where the person lived, and never from the federal government. They can be ordered online, by mail or in person, and at first only certain close relatives are eligible.

In practice, the funeral director frequently orders the initial batch as part of their service. Ask how many they are requesting and when they expect delivery. Families commonly underestimate the number needed: banks, insurers, retirement plans, brokerage firms, the motor vehicle department and the county recorder may each want one. Some institutions will accept a photocopy, or return an original on request, which stretches your supply.

When copies arrive, check that the name, birth date and other entries are correct. Errors are simpler to fix early. Store the certificates together in one envelope and note who has received one.

Social Security and Medicare

Social Security must be informed, and typically the funeral home does this. You can give the deceased person’s Social Security number to the funeral director so they can report the death. To report it yourself, call 1-800-772-1213. Reports are accepted only by phone or in person, not online.

Medicare normally hears from Social Security. According to Medicare’s guidance, relatives can also phone Social Security directly; the TTY line is 1-800-325-0778. It is still worth confirming with the funeral director that the report went through.

One rule surprises many relatives. Social Security cannot pay benefits for the month a person dies, so the deposit arriving the following month must be returned. Someone who died in July would not be entitled to the August payment. Where benefits went into a bank account, ask the bank to send back that payment and any later ones. Avoid spending it, even from a joint account.

A surviving spouse, dependent children or sometimes a divorced spouse may qualify for survivor benefits, so ask when you speak to Social Security. USAGov’s list of steps after a death also suggests checking for other benefits you might be entitled to.

If the person was a veteran

Eligible veterans may qualify for burial in a VA national cemetery, a headstone or marker, a Presidential Memorial Certificate and a burial allowance. To schedule an interment in a national cemetery, call 800-535-1117. Most funeral directors have arranged military honors before and can coordinate.

You will usually need discharge papers, often a form known as the DD214. If they cannot be found, the funeral home or the VA can explain how to request a replacement. Record what you applied for and when, because some allowances are claimed after the service rather than beforehand.

Employer, pension and life insurance

If the person was still working, contact their employer’s human resources department. Ask about final wages, unused vacation, group life coverage, 401(k) balances and continued health coverage for dependents. Request the name of a single contact, ideally with a direct extension.

For retirees, notify each pension plan or former employer that sent them income. Pensions often need stopping or converting to a survivor benefit, and payments made after the death may have to be repaid, much as with Social Security.

Search for life insurance policies, annuities, IRAs and payable-on-death bank accounts. These generally pass straight to the named beneficiary rather than under the will, and the beneficiary usually files the claim with a certified certificate. Keep track of each conversation on a who-to-notify list: organization, date, the representative you spoke to and any reference number.

The will and the executor

A will usually names an executor: the individual chosen to settle the estate. Being named does not grant full legal authority immediately. That comes once the probate court appoints them, often through a document called letters testamentary. Without a will, the court appoints an administrator, typically a close relative. Both roles are often described as the personal representative.

Wills and estates are handled by probate courts, which are state and territory courts, so procedures depend on the state and county of residence. Probate does not need to begin this week. It is enough to locate the will, identify the executor and keep the original safe. Do not unstaple it, mark it or make notes on it.

The executor need not be whoever arranges the funeral or makes the first phone calls. Families often divide responsibilities. If you are helping rather than serving as executor, you can still gather information for them. An important documents locator records where things are: deeds, vehicle titles, insurance policies, bank statements, tax returns, the safe-deposit box key, and hints to passwords. It can spare the executor weeks of searching.

Where the estate includes real estate, a business, significant debts or family disagreement, consult a probate attorney early. Many will explain how the process works locally during a short initial conversation.

Mail

Mail is one of the main ways you discover what the person owned and owed: statements, insurance notices, pension letters, subscriptions and bills. Magazines, catalogs and charity appeals can be canceled one by one later. If the home is empty, ask a neighbor or relative to collect it regularly, so nothing gets missed and the property does not look vacant.

Redirecting it is more formal. USPS says only the appointed executor or administrator can change the mailing address of someone who has died, in person at a Post Office, with proof of authority. A death certificate alone is insufficient. Until an appointment happens, collecting by hand is usually the practical answer.

The home, the car and everyday services

An empty house needs a little attention. Set the thermostat so pipes will not freeze in winter, put a lamp on a timer, and keep the alarm system active if there is one. Tell a trusted neighbor, so a stranger’s car in the driveway gets noticed.

Gather prescription medicines and ask a local pharmacy about safe disposal or a take-back program. Firearms should be unloaded and locked away, or held by someone qualified, until the executor decides what happens to them. Rented medical equipment, such as an oxygen concentrator, wheelchair or walker, can be returned to the supplier; ask them to stop billing.

If the person rented an apartment, let the landlord know soon and ask what the lease says about notice and the deposit. Check that car and homeowners policies stay in force, since an uninsured vehicle or building is a real hazard. Cellphone plans, email, photo storage and social media profiles hold memories as well as information, so avoid deleting anything hastily; some platforms let relatives memorialize a profile later.

Protecting against identity theft

Sadly, people who recently died, especially elderly ones, are sometimes targeted by fraudsters, because new accounts opened in their name can go unnoticed. A few precautions lower that risk.

1. Keep the obituary brief. The IRS advises leaving personal details out of obituaries, such as the birth date, mother’s maiden name and street address.
2. Notify the credit bureaus. Send a copy of the certificate and request a deceased alert on the credit reports. Equifax says that if you write to Equifax at P.O. Box 105139, Atlanta, GA 30348-5139, it will inform the other two bureaus. Experian also accepts reports by mail or upload.
3. Lock away cards and documents. Put the wallet, purse, checkbook, Social Security card, driver’s license and passport somewhere secure.
4. Watch incoming post for unfamiliar cards, loan offers or invoices, and report anything suspicious.

Prepared death notification letters make this quicker. A standard letter to a credit bureau, bank or utility company, with blanks for names and dates, means you are not composing the same explanation over and over.

What can wait

Settling an estate usually takes months, and none of it has to be finished in week one. Big decisions are better postponed until the executor has been appointed and understands what the estate holds.

• Probate. Opening the court case can wait until after the funeral. The executor then contacts the probate court in the county where the person lived.
• Debts. A person’s debts are generally paid from their estate, not by relatives. You are not personally liable unless you shared the debt, for example as a co-signer or joint account holder, or another exception applies under state law. Do not pay from your own pocket just because a collector phones.
• Tax returns. A final federal return is usually due April 15 of the following year. The estate may need its own tax ID, called an EIN, and the executor notifies the IRS of their role with Form 56. These belong to the coming weeks, not the first days.
• Property and belongings. Leave the house, car, furniture, artwork, tools and heirlooms as they are until the executor knows what the will says.
• Closing accounts. Cancelling obviously unneeded services, like a streaming subscription or a rented hospital bed, is fine; closing bank accounts normally waits for the executor.

Keep paying essentials such as the mortgage, property taxes, homeowners insurance, electricity and water, so the property stays protected, and save receipts. An estate task tracker holds this longer list in one place, showing who owns each task and when it was completed. Federal estate tax affects only very large estates; the basic exclusion is $15,000,000 for deaths in 2026, so most families will owe none.

Looking after yourself

Grief is physically tiring in ways that are hard to predict. Many hospices run bereavement programs open to families, and clergy, counselors or local support groups can listen without judgment. Eat regular meals, even small ones, stay hydrated and nap whenever possible. Accept offers of help and make them specific: making calls, fetching mail, collecting relatives from the airport, cooking, or sitting beside you at the funeral home.

Leaving a task until tomorrow is fine. So is telling an office you will call back once you have the paperwork; staff who deal with bereavement are used to it. If a parent has died and you have siblings, agree early who is handling which calls, so nothing is duplicated or forgotten.

If you would like the organizers mentioned here in one place, The Executor Kit gathers them as printable sheets, spreadsheets and letters. Whether or not you use it, the main things this week are to write things down, share the load and take the rest one step at a time.