What do Coroners do?

When a death is reported to the Coroner preliminary enquiries will be made to decide if an investigation is required.  Coroners must investigate a death if there is reason to suspect;

• The death was violent or unnatural;
• The cause of death is unknown; or
• The deceased died while in state detention. 

A Coroner's investigation involves establishing the identity of the person who has died; where and when they died and how (not why) death came about. 

The Coroner may decide to hold an Inquest as part of the investigation. 

Coroners may use information discovered during the investigation to assist in the prevention of other deaths.

Other sections on this website explain the different possibilities more fully and the timescales you can expect. In all cases, the Coroner aims to accommodate families' funeral plans while making sure that the investigations are effective and complete.

A guide to the work of the Coroner is available from the Ministry of Justice website.