Rising numbers of people found long after death in England and Wales – study

Men are more than twice as likely as women to be discovered in a decomposed state, according to the study. Photograph: RubberBall Productions/Getty Images

Growing numbers of people in England and Wales are being found so long after they have died that their body has decomposed, in a shocking trend linked to austerity and social isolation, doctors have said.

Such deaths have been rising steadily in England and Wales since 1980 and are a product of wider societal breakdown, although Covid may also have played a part, according to new research.