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Coroners Act 2006

Deaths to be reported and post-mortems - Reporting of deaths

13: Duty to report deaths

You could also call this:

"Tell the police if you find a body or learn about a certain kind of death in New Zealand."

Illustration for Coroners Act 2006

If you find a body in New Zealand, you must tell a Police employee as soon as you can. You do not have to report it if you think the Police already know about it or someone else will tell them. You also have to report a death to a Police employee if you learn about a certain kind of death, which is described in section 14, unless you think the Police already know or someone else will report it. If a death happens because of assisted dying under the End of Life Choice Act 2019, you do not have to report it. You can report a death that happened overseas to a Police employee if you are worried that the overseas authorities do not know the cause and circumstances of the death, and the body is in New Zealand.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM377532.

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Topics:
Crime and justice > Police and safetyHealth and wellbeing > Public health
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"Rules to help change the Coroners Act 2006"

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14: Deaths that must be reported under section 13(2), or

"Deaths that must be reported to help keep people safe in New Zealand"

Part 2Deaths to be reported and post-mortems
Reporting of deaths

13Duty to report deaths

  1. A person who finds a body in New Zealand must report the finding to a Police employee as soon as practicable unless the person believes that the finding is already known to the New Zealand Police, or will be reported to a Police employee by another person.

  2. A person who learns of a death of a kind described in section 14 must report that death to a Police employee as soon as practicable unless the person believes that the death is already known to the New Zealand Police, or will be reported to a Police employee by another person.

  3. However, subsections (1) and (2) do not apply in any case in which the death was a result of assisted dying under the End of Life Choice Act 2019.

  4. Any person may, but is not required to, report an overseas death to a Police employee if—

  5. the person is concerned that overseas authorities have not established the cause and circumstances of the death, or there is doubt about the accuracy of any conclusion reached by an overseas authority; and
    1. the body of the dead person is in New Zealand.

      Notes
      • Section 13: replaced, on , by section 10 of the Coroners Amendment Act 2016 (2016 No 29).
      • Section 13(2A): inserted, on , by section 41 of the End of Life Choice Act 2019 (2019 No 67).