uk Death, bereavement & serious family crises

What to do if…
you are told a relative died in custody and you need to confirm the details

Produced and maintained by PanicStation.org Published: 6 May 2026 Last reviewed: 17 July 2026 Editorial policy UK guide

Short answer

Treat the message as unconfirmed until you verify it through official contact routes. Your immediate goal is to get one named official contact and one reference number for the place or agency that had custody.

Do not do these things

Don’t send money, bank details, passwords, or photos of ID to anyone who contacted you out of the blue.
Don’t rely on social media posts, forwarded messages, or screenshots as confirmation.
Don’t call back only the number that contacted you; use a main published number from the organisation’s official website.
Don’t agree to an interview, statement, or recorded call if you feel pressured; you can ask for a named contact and an official call-back route first.
Don’t post names, locations, or allegations publicly while identity, next-of-kin status, and official contacts are still being confirmed.
Don’t travel a long distance based only on one unverified call or text.

What to do now

Write down exactly what you have been told.
Record the caller’s name, role, organisation, phone number, date and time, where they say the death happened, and any custody record, prison number, incident number, case number, or reference number.
Verify through a main official route.
Look up the organisation yourself. Use the police force, prison, immigration removal centre, hospital, coroner, procurator fiscal, or ombudsman contact details from an official website, not from the message you received.
Work out who may have had custody.
If you are not sure, start with the police force for the area where your relative was last known to be and ask which agency had custody. If prison is possible but you do not know which prison, ask whether they can tell you the correct route for confirming location and next-of-kin contact.
Call the place or agency that may have had custody and ask for the right role.
Use plain wording: “I have been told that [full name, date of birth] may have died while in custody. I need to confirm whether this is true and who the official family contact is.”
Ask for the reference number, the name and role of the person assigned to speak with family, and what they can confirm now.
- For police custody or death following police contact, ask for the custody duty officer, duty inspector, or family liaison route.
- For prison custody, ask for the duty governor, orderly officer, safer custody team, or family liaison contact.
- For immigration detention, ask for the centre’s duty manager or family liaison contact and any death-in-detention reference details they can share.
Contact the death-investigation authority for where the death happened.
Ask whether they have a case for your relative, what reference number they can give, and how next of kin should be updated.
- In England and Wales, contact the coroner’s office for the area where the death happened.
- In Scotland, contact the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service death investigation contact route.
- In Northern Ireland, contact the Coroners Service for Northern Ireland.
If police contact is involved, ask which oversight or investigation route applies.
Do not try to decide this yourself while distressed; ask the police force or death-investigation contact to confirm.
- In England and Wales, ask whether the death has been referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct and ask for the IOPC reference or contact route.
- In Scotland, ask COPFS whether an independent police investigation has been instructed and who the family contact is.
- In Northern Ireland, ask whether the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland has been notified and whether a family liaison route has been appointed.
If prison or immigration detention is involved, ask which ombudsman investigation route applies.
In England and Wales prison custody, and in UK immigration detention settings that it covers, ask whether the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has been notified and who will liaise with family. In Northern Ireland prison custody, ask whether the Prisoner Ombudsman for Northern Ireland has been notified.
Confirm and correct next-of-kin details.
Say your relationship to the person, that you may be next of kin, and your correct phone number, email address, and postal address. Ask the official contact to read the details back to you.
Ask for written confirmation of the contact route.
Ask for an email or letter showing the organisation name, staff member’s name and role, main switchboard number, and any reference numbers. This helps reduce confusion and protects you from scams.
Bring in one trusted person as a note-taker.
Put calls on speaker, or ask someone you trust to sit with you and write down names, times, phone numbers, and what each person says.

What can wait

You do not need to decide today about complaints, legal action, media contact, campaigning, or public statements.
You do not need to understand the full process now; early information is often limited and can later change.
You do not need to make funeral decisions until you know who has authority for release and which nation’s process applies.
You do not need to speak to every organisation at once; one reliable official contact and one reference number is enough for the first step.

Important reassurance

Shock can make it hard to remember names, ask questions, or judge what is real. Taking the time to verify through official numbers is sensible, and asking for written contact details is a normal thing to do.

Scope note

This is first-steps-only guidance for confirming a reported death in custody and finding the correct official contacts. Later decisions about inquests, Fatal Accident Inquiries, complaints, representation, and support may need specialist legal advice or advocacy.

Important note

This guide provides general information and practical first actions, not legal, medical, financial, therapeutic, or other professional advice. Processes vary across the UK and by agency. If you cannot confirm something directly, treat it as uncertain and focus on getting an official point of contact and a reference or case number.

Additional Resources

About this guide

This guide was produced and is maintained by PanicStation.org using its published editorial process. Official and specialist sources are checked where relevant, and AI-assisted tools may be used for drafting, organisation, and consistency checks. The site operator remains responsible for publication, revision, and removal decisions.

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