Enrichment · Life Skills

How many copies,
and who keeps them.

After a death almost every account, policy and title asks for a certified copy, and some keep it. List the places, see how many copies that really is, and track the orders so you are not ordering one at a time for months.

Start a requestWhat you get
$5one-time · every device you sign in on
Buy · $5

Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Or get it in the Life skills kit, $29 for 28 items.

Your requests

The worked example is made up: seven copies needed for a mother’s accounts with five ordered through the funeral home, and an uncle’s certificate with the cause still pending. Saved on this device only.

Loading the request form. If nothing appears, turn on JavaScript.

What you get

Enrichment · Life Skills$5

What you finish with
A record per person: initials, date and place of death, your relationship, whether the cause is pending, every place that needs a certified copy with how many and whether it is returned, every order with copies, fee and date received, and six steps. Counts copies needed against ordered and the money spent; flags a shortfall, a pending cause, orders not received, online service fees and the informational-copy rule.
Who it is for
Family members and executors handling the paperwork after a death.
Format
Browser organizer with a saved record per person. Prints the list of places and orders, every request in a table or a blank sheet; downloads a spreadsheet (.csv); exports and imports a file. Kept private on your device.
Access
$5 one-time, yours on every device you sign in on; the tool opens once you are signed in with it. Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Also in the Life skills kit ($29) and the Enrichment Suite pass ($119), and 1 more bundle. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The Life Skills space in Caveat Enrichment.
Support
Questions about access, an order or a correction: team@caveatacademic.com.

How to use it

  1. Enter where the death happened.
  2. List every place that needs a copy and ask if they return it.
  3. Order the total at once, from the funeral home or vital records.
  4. Log each order and when it arrives.
  5. Keep one copy at home.

Start a request

Who needs one

Who usually needs a certified copyPlaceUsuallyNoteBanks and credit unionsYesone per institutionLife insuranceYesone per policyPensions and annuitiesYesask about survivor benefitsVehicle and home titlesYesmotor vehicles, county recorderBrokerage and retirementYessome return itSocial SecurityOften notfuneral home reportsUtilities and phonesRarelya photocopy often worksWho usually needs a certified copyBanks and credit unionsUsually: YesNote: one per institutionLife insuranceUsually: YesNote: one per policyPensions and annuitiesUsually: YesNote: ask about survivor benefitsVehicle and home titlesUsually: YesNote: motor vehicles, county recorderBrokerage and retirementUsually: YesNote: some return itSocial SecurityUsually: Often notNote: funeral home reportsUtilities and phonesUsually: RarelyNote: a photocopy often works
Ask before you send one: some places look and give it back, and some accept a photocopy. Certified copies have a raised or colored seal.

Certified or informational

A certified copy carries the issuing office’s seal and is accepted as legal proof of death. An informational copy has the same facts but is marked as not valid for legal purposes; it is fine for family records and genealogy. Many states limit certified copies to close relatives and people with a legal need.

Where to order

The funeral home usually orders the first set. Later copies come from the state vital records office or, in many states, the county where the death happened. Online services are convenient but add their own fee.

Sources

  1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Where to Write for Vital Records (cdc.gov/nchs/w2w).
  2. Social Security Administration. What to do when someone dies and Reporting a death (ssa.gov).
  3. Federal Trade Commission. Funeral Rule and Shopping for funeral services (consumer.ftc.gov).
  4. National Association for Public Health Statistics and Information Systems. Vital records (naphsis.org).

The worked examples are made up. Eligibility, fees and processing times are set by each state; check the vital records office where the death happened. Nothing you type is sent to Caveat. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.