We don't have a death certificate. What can we do?

check with everyone that you think could have documented it, the coroner or medical examiner, one of them must have completed it and filed with the appropriate people.  When my dad passed in May the funeral director got us 3 originals and 7 copies.  they handled all of that.  They have to create a death certificate, its just a matter of who did it and where are the copies.  wishing you luck.

imho, you should speak to the Funeral Home.

Take the police report to the M Es office. Prayers are with you....

Talk about crazy deal! Who has her body stored? If it's a funeral home, they should be able to contact the person/facility they got the body from. Or, go to the police and ask for a copy of the report, who took the body, so you can call them to find out what's going on. Not sure why none of these officials from your county have not provided you with the info you need. There is also the possibility since she died at home, they had to do an autopsy and autopsies are being delayed in your state.

I am so sorry for the loss of your loved one. Definitely the funeral home director will have this. They typically only give you 5 but I suggest that, once you are in touch with them, you ask for more which may cost you a nominal fee but it seems they never give enough. Good luck and God bless you.❤️

Keep demanding it from the funeral director. If you don't get anywhere, check with your local Office on Aging. You can also contact your state senator and assemblyman for help - they will get it for you.

WuuHuu, some family member, next of kin usually, needs to fill out a vital records form. The funeral home is the place that deals with these forms. A death certificate can not be generated without it.

Ask the funeral home who they sent that form to. That is the person that they are recognizing as next of kin.

Not just anyone can deal with this, so you have to find out who they are dealing with and speak with that person.

In AZ they will only hold the body so long before they deal with it. Your medical examiner should be able to direct you in the legality of your local protocols.

Your husband is the best chance of getting information as he is her legal next of kin with any siblings, as long as her parents are no longer living.

I am so sorry for your family's loss. May God bless you all with grieving mercies and comfort during this difficult time.

Please come back and tell us how u finally had to resolve this.

Make an appointment with a funeral home and speak to a funeral director about the cremation and explain your situation. If you plan the arrangements with them at their funeral home, they will take care of getting the death certificate and will also get certified copies of it for you (they usually cost around $20 apiece) so you can use them to take care of such business as closing her bank accounts and shutting down her credit cards.
Please speak to a funeral director. They will help you.

Got mine for my parents within 2 weeks or less of their deaths. The funeral home took care of getting them. They automatically sent 10 copies.

Call the Coroner that took her away.

Sorry to here of your loss we received our death certificates with into days we just paid the extra cost for first class to be sent .

The funeral home took care of that for me. I had it within two days in time for the cremation to take place as scheduled.

Only the ones who took her body can create a death certificate. Ask for the police report and make a complaint with the police department.

First, my condolences on the loss of your MIL. Contact your state or local Department of Health for advice. In Ohio the State DOH issues death and birth certificates.

My mother died 4 weeks ago and we were told that it would take 4-6 weeks to get a death certificate because of the pandemic.

I am in Ohio and we did not have to wait for the cremation because Mom died in hospital. It did take nearly 2 weeks for the cremation and another 2 weeks for burial, everyone is backed up.

WuuHuu, I am sorry for your loss.

Has anyone in the family asked the Police, Coronor's Office or Medical Examiner for assistance?

Ditto to what Dolciani posted. Just a suggestion from my own experience as well to make sure you request MORE than one copy of the death certificate. In my state I think they gave us 2 (for free) but I would ask for more right away. There will be a fee for extras, but we learned that certain institutions require an original certificate, not a copy or a scan. I would get at least 6 or 8. One was an oil company in which my LO owned shares. LO died with no will and the company would only accept an original certificate in order to cash out the shares and make check to LO's wife.

We are in Maryland and my father passed on Saturday - his doctor called me Monday and told me she signed his death certificate. The crematorium told me yesterday that it will take 6-8 weeks to receive copies of the death certificate (I ordered 10 copies) because COVID has slowed down the process at the DVR (Division of Vital Records). That may be the case in your mother’s death. I know it only took a week to get copies when my mother passed 4 years ago. It affects opening and settling an estate - the bank requires one to open an account for the deceased. COVID has changed everything

What do you mean by "her body is stored away?" Is this still a coroner's case? Because if so, until a "cause of death" is ascertained, there will be no death certificate. When the body is ready for transfer to funeral home the next of kin or the POA listed will be contacted for transfer. The Funeral Home is the one who can ask you how many death certificates you want printed. It will then take several weeks to get to you. If you need more you go to your County Recorder's office. But first things first. This may still be a coroner's case with no death certificate, cause of death etc recorded. Otherwise they would not be holding this body. Contact the Coroner's office to which the body was taken.
Meanwhile there is no hurry in anyone asking you for this certificate. If you reply that this is still a coroner's case, and body is not released, no certificates yet, all entities will understand.

The funeral home ordered copies of the death certificate and there was a per copy charge.

I think the county records office is where you would order copies directly. Check their web site. Try googling ________ county death certificate.

My Mom passed in NH. The death certificates were given to me the day my Mom was buried, 4 days after her death by the Funeral Home director. Worried may be correct if there is a coroner involved. Are you going thru a Funeral home for the cremation? If so, they should be able to tell u what is going on.

I believe the coroner's office would have to generate the death certificate since no doctor would sign off on it. That's where you need to go to get it.

This sounds ghastly, but I hope they haven't forgotten her because they're overrun with Covid cases. My mother is on hospice care, and I've instructed the nurse to write Mom's full name and my phone number on her arm with a Sharpie to prevent her body from being misplaced or misidentified. I can't find a mortuary here in Southern California that will agree to take her body when she dies, so if she ends up in a medical examiner's office, or worse, in a refrigerated truck, I want her to be identifiable.

I can't believe the world has come to this.

What country are you in? It’s only been 3 weeks. If you are in the US & are expecting a death certificate this soon, you will need to be patient because the death certificate isn’t issued instantly when someone dies at home under these circumstances. Since the coroner is involved, the death certificate won’t be issued until they have determined the cause of death which can take months if they are waiting on toxicology results. Have you contacted the coroners officer for an update?