PART XIICORRECTION OF ERRORS
Time when entry is complete
71. An entry of a birth, still-birth, death or marriage shall for the purposes of these regulations be deemed to have been completed when the registrar by whom it is made has signed the entry and added his official description.
Correction of entry before completion
72.—(1) Where under these regulations a registrar is required to correct an error in an entry of a birth, still-birth, death or marriage before the completion of the entry, he shall, subject to the provisions of paragraph (2), make the correction in the following manner—
(a)if a word is incorrect, he shall strike it out by a line drawn through it, so, however, that the word remains legible, and write the correct word above it;
(b)if in any group of figures one or more figures is incorrect, he shall strike out all the figures in the group by a line drawn through them, so, however, that they remain legible, and write the correct figures above them;
(c)if a word has been omitted, he shall place a caret where the omission occurs and above the caret he shall write the word omitted, or if there is space to write the word omitted in the place of the omission, he shall write the word therein and underline it;
(d)all errors corrected as aforesaid shall be numbered consecutively by the registrar from the beginning of the register starting with “one”, and on making any such correction the registrar shall write the number of the error in figures against the correction in the body of the entry and shall repeat the same number in words in the margin of the entry and add his initials;
(e)if the particulars required to be entered in any two spaces or columns have been inadvertently transposed, the registrar shall, without any other correction, write in the margin of the entry a note of the error in the following form: “The particulars in … and … inadvertently transposed”, and add his initials.
(f)if the particulars required to be entered in respect of the parties to a marriage, or the fathers of the parties, have been inadvertently transposed, the registrar shall, without any other correction, write in the margin of the entry a note to that effect, specifying the particulars to which the note relates, and add his initials.
(2) If it appears that an error has been made in the signature of the informant or of one of the parties or witnesses to a marriage, the signatory and not the registrar shall make the correction, and the registrar shall number the error and make an entry in the margin as provided in paragraph (1)(d).
Correction of minor clerical errors after completion
73.—(1)
(2) The clerical errors to which this regulation applies are—
(a)in a case where the particulars have been entered otherwise than by copying from a document specified in sub-paragraph (f) of this paragraph, any error in spelling any word which is not the name or surname of any person, or the misplacement or incorrect repetition of any such word;
(b)the incorrect statement or omission of the year of the birth, still-birth or death to which an entry relates or of the year of registration (but not of both);
(c)the incorrect statement or omission of the month in the date of registration, where it is evident from the preceding and succeeding entries what month should have been inserted;
(d)the omission of the words “by declaration dated …” in space 14 of a birth entry made in pursuance of regulation 24;
(e)the omission of any of the words “by baptism on …” or “on certificate of naming dated …” , as the case may be, following the entry of a name in space 17 of a birth entry made in pursuance of section 13 of the Act (which relates to registration or alteration of name after registration of birth);
(f)any error or omission in copying any particulars required to be copied from—
(i)a declaration made in pursuance of regulation 24;
(ii)a certificate of name given in baptism, or a certificate of name given otherwise than in baptism, delivered in pursuance of the said section 13;
(iii)a certificate of cause of death;
(iv)a doctor's or midwife's certificate of still-birth;
(v)a coroner's notification after post-mortem without inquest;
(vi)a coroner's certificate after inquest.
(3) Where a registrar makes any correction under paragraph (1), he shall make the correction in the presence and with the concurrence of the superintendent registrar or Inspector of Registration, and shall write in the margin of the entry a note in the following form:—
“
”
and shall complete and sign the note in the places provided; and the super-intendent registrar or Inspector of Registration, as the case may be, shall thereupon sign the note in the place provided.
(4) Where a superintendent registrar makes a correction under paragraph (1), he shall write in the margin of corrected entry a note in the following form—
“
”
(5) Where a registrar or a superintendent registrar is authorised by the Registrar General to correct, as if it were a Class I clerical error, a clerical error or omission of a kind other than those specified in paragraph (2), he shall correct the error or omission in the manner provided in regulation 72(1), (a), (b), (c) or (e), whichever is appropriate, and shall write in the margin of the entry a note in the following form or in such other form as the Registrar General may in any particular case direct—
“
”
and shall complete and sign the note in the places provided.
Correction of other clerical errors
74.—(1) Where it appears or is represented to a superintendent registrar or a registrar that there is in a completed entry made on the information of an informant in a register of births, still-births or deaths in his custody a clerical error other than a Class I clerical error, he shall send a report to the Registrar General about the alleged error, including in that report—
(a)such evidence as the Registrar General may require for the purpose of verifying the facts;
(b)the name of a qualified informant who will be available to witness a correction of the error; and
(c)a copy of the entry.
(2) On receiving the authority of the Registrar General to correct such an error, the superintendent registrar or the registrar, as the case may be, shall, in the presence of a qualified informant specified in the authority for the purpose, correct the error in the manner provided in regulation 72 (1), (a), (b), (c) or (e), whichever is appropriate.
(3) Where any correction is made under this regulation, the superintendent registrar or the registrar, as the case may be, shall write in the margin of the entry a note in the following form —
“
”
and shall complete and sign the note in the places provided; and the informant shall sign the note in the place provided and the superintendent registrar or registrar shall add to the signature of the informant his qualification.
Errors of fact or substance
75.—(1) Where it appears or is represented to a superintendent registrar or a registrar that there is an error of fact or substance in a completed entry in a register of births, still-births or deaths in his custody, not being an entry made in pursuance of a coroner's certificate after inquest, he shall send a report to the Registrar General about the alleged error, giving such information as the Registrar General may require, together with a copy of the entry, and shall comply with any particular instruction which the Registrar General may give for the purpose of verifying the facts of the case and ascertaining whether there are available two persons qualified to make a statutory declaration required by section 29(3) of the Act (which relates to the correction of errors in registers).
(2) On being informed by the Registrar General that the alleged error may be corrected on production of a statutory declaration made by the two persons aforesaid in such terms as satisfy the requirements of the said section 29(3), the superintendent registrar or the registrar, as the case may be, shall on production to him of the statutory declaration correct the error in the following manner—
(a)he shall underline the erroneous matter in the entry; and
(b)he shall, unless otherwise directed by the Registrar General, write in the margin of the entry a note in the following form—
“
”
and he shall enter the particulars of the correction and of the declarants and complete and sign the note in the places provided.
Correction on coroner's certificate
76.—(1) Where the superintendent registrar or the registrar having the custody of a register containing an entry made in pursuance of a coroner's certificate after inquest receives a certificate relating to that entry given by the coroner authorising the correction of the entry, he shall send a report to the Registrar General about the error, together with a copy of the entry and any coroner's certificate relating to the entry.
(2) Where the error is a clerical error, the superintendent registrar or the registrar, as the case may be, shall correct the error in the manner provided in regulation 72(1), (a), (b), (c), or (e), whichever is appropriate, and shall write in the margin of the said entry a note in the following form—
“
”
(3) Where the error is one of fact or substance, the superintendent registrar or the registrar, as the case may be, shall—
(a)underline the erroneous matter in the entry; and
(b)write in the margin of the entry a note in the following form—
“
”
and shall complete and sign the note in the places provided.
Correction of marriage entry
77. Where it appears or is represented to the superintendent registrar or the registrar that there is in a completed entry in a register of marriages in his custody an error to which section 61 of the Marriage Act 1949 relates, he shall send a report to the Registrar General about the alleged error, giving such information as the Registrar General may require, together with a copy of the entry, and shall comply with any instruction which the Registrar General may give for the purpose of verifying the facts of the case and of ascertaining whether the parties or witnesses will be available to witness a correction of the entry.