New digital one-stop shop for death notifications

NSW government has launched a digital service that allows families to notify numerous organisations at once of a death.

Victor Dominello

The Australian Death Notification Service (ADNS), a one-stop online website, was launched at the end of August and is a collaboration of Births, Deaths and Marriages registries across Australia.

It is part of the government’s Life Journeys initiative designed to help people navigate through key events in their lives.

ADNS is currently available to all Australian states and territories except the Australian Capital Territory.

Minister for Customer Service Victor Dominello says when a person dies, the family needs to notify up to 40 government and private organisations and NGOs.

“These notifications can be stressful and traumatic, taking up to several months and often requiring multiple physical visits with a certified copy of a death certificate,” Mr Dominello said in a statement.   

“The last thing they need during this difficult time is to be burdened with lots of paperwork. This is something most people go through and it shouldn’t be the case.”

The big four banks have joined the ADNS as well as Optus, Telstra, Vodafone and Sydney Water.

The government is currently working to get other providers on board.

How it works

The ADNS works by validating details about a deceased person against the Australian Death Check, a system that holds death registration data recorded by Birth, Deaths and Marriages Registries.

A death certificate is needed to use the service, however, the customer doesn’t need to have the certificate with them.

“The customer simply enters the details of the deceased, chooses which institutions and services they wish to notify, and adds their contact details,” Mr Dominello said.

“Then they will receive communication back on next steps within 10 business days from the chosen service providers.”

The new service could save more than 30 hours of time, the government says.

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