How to Find Out If Someone Died: Necessary Steps In Unclear Situation

After a long absence or silence, you may need to take on the unpleasant task of finding out if someone has passed away. This article will show you how to find out if someone died recently – including where to start and which sources to consult.

How To Find Out if Someone Died Recently

If you are trying to find out if someone has died online, you need to know the best places to start.

1.      General Search Queries

If you are wondering how to find out if someone died, you’ll probably consult Google right away. Google should always be your first port of call. You can start online using something such as TruthFinder’s free people search tool that scans public records sources to compile information on an individual. Information is put into an easy-to-navigate and detailed report. . Start by searching the person’s name and location, then combine your search with the word “death” or “obituary”. You can also include any other information, like their place of work or their spouse’s name to find out if someone passed away recently.

2.      Online Obituary Finders

If you want to find out if someone is dead for free, you can consult online obituary finders. You will need to know the full name of the person you are looking for, their place of residence, and their birth date for the narrowest search. Genealogy websites may also list obituaries, as do gravesite records like FindAGrave.com. Note that these sites usually focus on historic deaths, but you may find recent information on there.

3.      Digitized Cemetery Records

Many cemeteries have digitized their records. You can consult the local cemeteries in the person’s town or city to see if they have been laid to rest there. However, the person may not have been buried in the city where they last lived.

4.      Social Media

Social media is a great search engine to use and often the best way to find if someone died. Many family members will post about a person that has passed away on Facebook or Instagram. They may also choose to convert the deceased’s profile to a memorial page. You can also use social media to get in touch with next of kin for more information. Social media is a great way of tracking anyone down – you can also use social media to ask for information about someone’s whereabouts, or find out who their employer or spouse was so that you can contact them for assistance.

5.      Use the Newspaper

If someone isn’t very tech savvy and doesn’t have a social media account, you can search the newspaper for information about them. The obituaries section is a good start, but you can also consult the paper to see if there was a high-profile accident that may have involved the person you are looking for.

6.      Consult a Public Record Service

If you get stuck, you should consult a public records service like Radaris. They provide national profiles by combining public records and social media (as well as other methods). They may be able to locate someone’s recent activities based on their name and address by consulting their vast database. Here is a detailed article on using public record services to find out how someone died.

7.      Consult Churches or Courthouses

Many courthouses may keep a death certificate on hand that you can consult and verify. If the person you are looking for was an active member of a specific church, their death would have likely been noted on the membership roll and there’s a good chance that the member of the clergy would have been involved with the funeral itself. You can reach out to a few religious organizations in the area for more information.

What Information Do You Need to Find Someone?

The more information you can provide or search for online, the better. Try to determine details including:

  • The person’s full name
  • Aliases and nicknames they may have used
  • Their age
  • Their town of residence
  • Their place of birth
  • Their birth date
  • Marriages/divorces
  • Their place of work
  • Email address or phone number

These details can confirm whether the obituary you found belongs to the right person or not and can help you narrow down your search considerably.

Conclusion

Now you know how to find out if someone died recently: use online searches, databases, and a little bit of amateur sleuthing. The news may not be good, but knowing is always better than not knowing.