How to notify Macmillan Cancer Support when someone dies

Last updated 15 July 2026

Reviewed by the After Loss Guide editorial team · updated 15 July 2026

Researched from primary sources. See our editorial policy.

If someone close to you supported Macmillan Cancer Support – through a regular monthly gift, a coffee morning collection, or fundraising in memory of someone else lost to cancer – that relationship doesn’t stop automatically when they die. Someone needs to tell Macmillan directly, both to close the supporter record and to stop the letters, emails, and calls that would otherwise keep arriving in their name.

This guide covers how to notify Macmillan of a death, what to have ready when you call, what happens to a regular donation and any Gift Aid declaration, and how to deal with in-memory giving or a legacy gift left in the will.

For a full list of organisations to notify after a death, see what to do when someone dies.

How to notify Macmillan Cancer Support

Macmillan handles most bereavement-related contact through its Supporter Care team, the group that manages regular donations, fundraising records, and general supporter enquiries.

To stop a regular donation, cancel mailings, or update a supporter’s record, contact Supporter Care:

If the deceased left a gift to Macmillan in their will, this is handled separately by the dedicated Legacy Income Team rather than Supporter Care – see the section below on legacy gifts.

If the family wants to make a donation in the person’s memory, this is also a separate route, run through Macmillan’s in-memory giving service.

If you or a family member need emotional or practical bereavement support rather than help with an account, Macmillan’s own Support Line is available free on 0808 808 00 00, seven days a week, 8am–8pm. This line is staffed by cancer information specialists and is separate from Supporter Care – it isn’t the right number for stopping a donation, but it’s worth knowing about if the death was cancer-related and the family would welcome someone to talk to.

When you call or write to Supporter Care, explain that the supporter has died and give their full name and address – a supporter or donor reference number, if you have one, speeds things up but isn’t essential. It appears on any recent donation confirmation or mailing label from Macmillan.

Source: Macmillan – Ways to contact Macmillan, verified July 2026.

What documents you’ll need

Macmillan’s requirements for stopping a regular donation or supporter mailings are lighter than a bank or pension provider, because a regular gift is a charitable subscription rather than a financial account holding the deceased’s own money.

DocumentNotes
Deceased's full name and addressThe minimum needed to locate and close the supporter record
Supporter or donor reference numberSpeeds up the call but not essential – found on donation confirmations or mailing labels
Your relationship to the deceasedNeeded so Supporter Care can update the record appropriately
Death certificateNot published as a requirement for stopping a regular donation or mailings – this process is phone- and email-based rather than document-led

The picture is different if you’re an executor dealing with a legacy gift left to Macmillan in the will – that process, run by the Legacy Income Team, does require specific documentation depending on the type of gift, covered below.

What happens to the regular donation and in-memory giving

Once Supporter Care has been notified, any regular donation set up by direct debit or standing order is cancelled and no further payments are collected. If a payment is taken after you’ve notified Macmillan, or after the direct debit has been cancelled at the bank, you’re entitled to an immediate refund under the Direct Debit Guarantee. As a backstop, it’s worth also cancelling the instruction directly with the deceased’s bank – see our guide to what happens to direct debits when someone dies for the full process.

Any Gift Aid declaration linked to the supporter’s record ends automatically once the regular donation stops – there is nothing separate for the family to action with HMRC.

Mailings and appeals. Notifying Supporter Care should stop future post, email, and phone contact addressed to the deceased. As with most large fundraising charities, it can take one or two mailing cycles for this to filter through fully across every list, so it’s worth flagging again if post continues to arrive some weeks later.

If the family wants to give in memory of the person, Macmillan offers a dedicated route entirely separate from closing the supporter record. This can take several forms:

  • A one-off or monthly donation made in their memory, online or by phone
  • A funeral or memorial collection, either arranged through a funeral director or gathered informally and paid in afterwards
  • A Tribute Fund – a free personal webpage, hosted through the MuchLoved platform, where family and friends can share memories, photos, and collect donations. Macmillan states these pages remain online for years to come, so they can serve as a lasting memorial rather than a one-off appeal

None of these require the deceased’s own supporter record to be closed first, and they can be set up at any time.

Source: Macmillan – Donate in memory and Macmillan Tribute Funds, verified July 2026.

Legacy gifts left in a will

If the deceased left a gift to Macmillan in their will, this is dealt with by a dedicated Legacy Income Team, separate from both Supporter Care and general fundraising:

  • Phone: 020 7091 2333
  • Email: legacyincome@macmillan.org.uk
  • Post: Legacy Income Team, Macmillan Cancer Support, PO Box 791, York House, York, YO1 0NJ

What the Legacy Income Team needs depends on the type of gift named in the will:

Type of giftWhat Macmillan asks for
Pecuniary gift (a fixed sum of money)A copy of the relevant clause in the will; ideally, some background on why the deceased chose to remember Macmillan
Specific gift (an item or property)Marketing appraisals from three estate agents, proof the property has been marketed online for at least a month, and details of any offers considered
Life interest gift (Macmillan benefits after another beneficiary's interest ends)Valuations of the trust asset, plus periodic updates while the trust is running
Residuary gift (a share of what's left of the estate)A copy of the will, a schedule of assets and liabilities, the estate accounts once complete, and a tax deduction certificate (form R185) where relevant

Payment can be made by cheque, payable to “Macmillan Cancer Support”, or by direct bank transfer – the Legacy Income Team will provide account details and a payment reference on request.

This is a distinct process from making a donation in someone’s memory, and it’s handled by a different team from the one managing the deceased’s own regular giving.

Source: Macmillan – How to deal with gifts to charity in a will as an executor, verified July 2026.

Probate and thresholds

Stopping a regular donation or closing a supporter record does not require probate – it’s a straightforward account closure, not an estate asset with a balance to release.

A legacy gift named in the will is different: it’s administered as part of the wider probate and estate process, alongside any other named beneficiary. The executor registers the gift with the Legacy Income Team using the documentation set out above, and payment follows once the estate is in a position to distribute it – typically once the Grant of Probate has been obtained and the estate’s debts and other liabilities are settled.

For general guidance on the probate process itself, see do I need probate and how long does probate take.

How long it takes

Notifying Supporter Care stops a regular donation within a few working days, though it can take one or two mailing cycles for post and appeals to fully stop across every list Macmillan holds.

A legacy gift runs on a different, longer timeline, governed by the wider probate process rather than the notification itself. Once the required documents are submitted to the Legacy Income Team and a payment reference issued, the transfer can happen as soon as the estate is ready to make it – but this may be many months after the date of death if probate is still being administered.

Tips and things to watch out for

Different purposes, different teams. Regular donations and general supporter enquiries go through Supporter Care (0300 1000 200), but legacy gifts go to the Legacy Income Team on a separate number and postal address – mention up front if you’re calling about a will gift, so you’re not passed between departments.

No death certificate required to stop a donation. Unlike banks and utility companies, Macmillan’s Supporter Care process for stopping a regular gift or mailings doesn’t ask for one – don’t delay notifying them while you wait for certified copies you need elsewhere.

The Support Line is for people, not accounts. The free 0808 808 00 00 number is for emotional and practical bereavement support, not for administering a supporter record – if you call it about a donation, expect to be redirected to Supporter Care.

Expect mailings to take a little time to stop fully. Large fundraising charities often run several mailing lists in parallel. If post keeps arriving after you’ve notified Macmillan, contact Supporter Care again with the reference from the mailing itself.

In-memory giving is entirely optional. There’s no obligation to set up a Tribute Fund or memorial donation when you close the account – many families simply want the donation stopped, and that’s a complete outcome in itself.

Keep legacy paperwork together. If you’re an executor dealing with a will gift, identify which type of gift it is (pecuniary, specific, life interest, or residuary) before contacting the Legacy Income Team – the documents required differ by type, and having everything ready in one submission avoids delays waiting on follow-up requests.

Summary

To stop a regular donation or supporter mailings from Macmillan Cancer Support, call Supporter Care on 0300 1000 200 (Monday to Friday, 9:30am–4:30pm) or email fundraising@macmillan.org.uk. No death certificate is required for this. A legacy gift named in the will is handled separately by the Legacy Income Team (020 7091 2333, legacyincome@macmillan.org.uk), who need documentation that varies by gift type – a copy of the will clause for a pecuniary gift, or full estate accounts for a residuary gift. Giving in memory, through a Tribute Fund or funeral collection, is optional and entirely separate from either process.

For everything else involved in settling an estate, the what to do after a death hub covers each organisation and service you may need to notify. If the deceased also supported Cancer Research UK, the British Heart Foundation, or the RSPB, see our guides to notifying Cancer Research UK when someone dies, notifying British Heart Foundation when someone dies, and notifying the RSPB when someone dies.

Sources

For a full checklist of organisations to notify after a death, see what to do when someone dies.