To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate her Department has made of the number of people over 65 years who have died of hypothermia in their homes in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available. (291372)

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.

Letter from Jil Matheson, dated September 2009:

As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what estimate has been made of the number of people over 65 years who have died of hypothermia in their homes in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available. (291372)

Although hypothermia may be mentioned on a death certificate as contributing to the death, according to International Classification of Diseases rules it cannot be recorded as the underlying cause. An event that led to the death such as ‘Exposure to excessive cold’, or ‘Accidental fall’ may be recorded as the underlying cause, with hypothermia recorded as a contributory factor. If hypothermia were considered to be the main contributory factor, it would be reported as the ‘secondary cause’.

The table attached provides the number of deaths where (a) hypothermia was the secondary cause of death, and (b) hypothermia was mentioned anywhere on the death certificate, for persons aged over 65 years dying at home, in England and Wales, from 1999 to 2008 (the latest year available).