1939 register - closing an open identity

[PrawnCocktail]

I've just found my mother in law AND her younger sister open when I checked. Mercifully my mother and her sister weren't.

[groom]

Looks as if FindMyPast are getting a bit slack!

[Bearnan]

My 95 year old dad's open too. My sister was told we have to prove he's alive for it to be closed.

[Rosinish]

As I see it, it doesn't matter who asks for it to be closed, FindMyPast are in the wrong as they obviously haven't checked whether she has died before opening it.

I agree Groom.

Whether or not a discussion takes place, if FindMyPast get an email from anyone with a concern about a person's details being open & the person is known to be alive, they don't need to discuss it but they should take on board what has been pointed out to them & they in turn should check the info. given on the named living person on view as they will obviously not find a corresponding death.

They are obviously not checking their records the way we do (double checking/cross referencing) yet they have all the info. they need for to do those checks prior to opening the 1939 

Annie

[Rosinish]

My 95 year old dad's open too. My sister was told we have to prove he's alive for it to be closed.

How strange is that....they obviously don't have a DC for him, is that not proof in itself 

Annie

[groom]

My 95 year old dad's open too. My sister was told we have to prove he's alive for it to be closed.

I would challenge them on that, if you/he want it closed again, ask them to prove that he isn't still alive and ask for them to send you that proof.

[clairec666]

Looks as if FindMyPast are getting a bit slack!

That's what I thought! I understand the need to preserve the privacy of people who may still be alive... but they need to pay more attention to accuracy. For example, I've seen one family where all the members' records were open because the years of birth had been badly mistranscribed, and another where the wrong DOBs were assigned to the wrong people so the wrong records had been closed.

[jc26red]

I have said the same thing in my email to their customer support.  Proving someone is alive is harder than proving them dead.  Short of getting mother in law to sign a big piece of paper with today's date and her dob and sending a photo of her holding it... even then it could be any old dear in the nursing home sitting there grinning 

[Rosinish]

My 95 year old dad's open too. My sister was told we have to prove he's alive for it to be closed.

I would challenge them on that, if you/he want it closed again, ask them to prove that he isn't still alive and ask for them to send you that proof.

Surely they should be the ones to prove he or anyone else is dead before opening up their record.

What's the world coming to?
Living people related to someone can't discuss their relative but the world has access to more info. than would be required to close it....(as in), FindMyPast not finding a DC in their database i.e. said person is still alive.

Annie