Who do you apply to for medical records?

Primary Care

When someone dies their GP records will be passed on to the Primary Care Support England to be stored.

To request them you should write to the Practice Manager of your relative’s surgery. The Practice Manager will be able to tell you where they are stored.

To request NHS hospital records, you can apply to the Access to Medical Records Team at the Hospital which your relative attended.

If the records were updated during the 40 days before the date of your application, you should be given access within 21 days. Otherwise the time limit is 40 days. 

Some people experience difficulties in trying to access their loved one's medical records and it can sometimes be complicated. If you have approached the primary care provider, it may be helpful to tell them the reason why you are asking for the medical records, particularly if is because you might have a civil claim arising from your loved ones death.

Trust Investigator

If your relative’s death is investigated by the trust, you can also contact the investigator directly and asking for copies of records they have considered as part of their investigation.

The coroner

Another alternative is to try is to request the relevant medical records via the Coroner, explaining why you think they will be relevant to the inquest.