Report the death of a tenant
We would like to offer our condolences for your loss. We appreciate that during this difficult time informing relevant departments and authorities should be as simple and efficient as possible.
We have listed below forms to help you in informing the necessary departments.
Tell Us Once Form
This is a government hosted form that will be sent to various departments within South Cambridgeshire District Council and other government authorities including HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).
Once relevant departments receive this form you will then be contacted further, should any other matters need to take place, such as a termination of a tenancy.
If you are a council tenant and are wanting to inform us that a joint tenant at your address has died please use this Tell Us Once Form, and a member of the housing team will contact you.
Notify us to terminate a tenancy
If a tenant has died and there are no remaining occupants at their Council owned home, then their tenancy will need to be terminated.
This can be done by completing an online form which gives relevant information regarding the date the tenancy would end and the process. This form goes directly to the housing department and a housing officer will contact you in due course.
Please note – if you complete the Tell Us Once Form above this does not give notice on a council property and so you may still be requested to complete this additional form either online or via post.
Notify us of a terminated tenancy
What to do next
We ask that the home is handed back completely empty of furniture, carpets, curtains, and refuse. Any items in the garden, such as a greenhouse or the tenant’s own shed, should be removed. If there are any articles left in the home or garden we may charge for their disposal.
We want to provide some practical help in handing the home back to us.
Removing furniture items
There are local charities such as Emmaus or Cambridge Re-use that will take a lot of furniture items and household goods that are in good working order. They may even be able to collect it from the home.
If items need to be disposed of that are not in a good condition, we have a bulky item collection service, or they can be taken to your local household recycling centre.
If there are medical items such as raised toilet seats or walkers, they can often be returned by calling the number on the sticker attached to the item.
Handing the keys back
We ask for keys to be returned to our offices in Cambourne on the Monday following the four-week notice, before midday.
South Cambridgeshire Hall
Cambourne Business Park
Cambourne, Cambridge CB23 6EA
Rent payments
Rent will be due for the four-week notice period. There are a number of different ways to pay the rent.
If the tenant was receiving Housing Benefit, this will automatically be cancelled on the Sunday following the death of the tenant.
Other things to consider:
- Forwarding the mail
- Cancelling any food delivery services to the home
- Reading the energy meters to give a final reading to the energy companies