To ask if a widow is married?

[Pugwash1]

My Aunt is recently widowed and we are doing lots of admin that asks if she is married, divorced or other. I have tried to search for this online but without much luck. Can anyone help me with this please?

Too late... She ticked Mrs and pressed send despite my suggestions! I think 'other' may have been the correct option but she wasn't having any of it! Lots of other documents had the option for widowed which have been used such as pensions and insurance policies. Just treading carefully as it seems to be things like this where she worries about not being referred to as Mrs that seems to exacerbate her grief. She's 71 and has been married since 17 so from her POV can understand this to a degree.

I've now been further through the form and see that on the first page it asks for driving licence title, which is Mrs but can be any title she wants, or no title at all, providing she doesn't intend to use a false title for the purposes of fraud, eg claiming she is a doctor if she isn't.

Then later on it asks for marital status as part of the security checks, so is unconnected to her preferred title, and she shouldn't state married, because marriage ends on death, so she can pick single. I'm not sure what would count as 'other' - part way through divorce perhaps?

Surely no-one would be short sighted enough to assume that a woman's preferred title is related to her marital status these days?

This.

Title and marital status are different things. She can still use Mrs if she wants but her marital status would be single (if widowed is unavailable).

Too late... She ticked Mrs and pressed send despite my suggestions! I think 'other' may have been the correct option but she wasn't having any of it!

Marital status is a different question from title.

"Mrs" isn't a marital status.

So what was the actual question op? Marital status or title?

Widows and divorcees are perfectly entitled to use "Mrs" if they want to, despite no longer being married.

Title and marital status aren't the same.

You seem very confused OP. Perhaps you should just let her get on with it? She seems to know what she's doing.

As others have already said, title is just a title, that isn't to do with marital status. I think you're confusing matters OP.

I've been widowed. The correct status is other or unmarried, but definitely not married. The purpose of the question is to establish whether she has a spouse, not the correct form of address.

I continue to use Mrs but would answer unmarried and interpret 'other' as having a financially linked partner.

I'm recently widowed and have not yet had a form to fill in that asks this question, but have pondered about the correct answer if I do. WitsEnding interpreting 'other' as financially linked is problematic for me It sounds a bit like interpreting Ms as a divorced women, which is commonly done, but inaccurate.

So legally I guess I would put unmarried though I don't "feel" unmarried IYSWIM. I wear my rings: I will never stop doing that. Ironically, as a feminist, is took the title Mrs when I married 52 years ago and spent a lot of time thinking I should have stayed Ms. Now I am a widow I find comfort in being Mrs. as a link to my late DH. Mad I know....

I wonder if widowers ever stop to think about these sorts of things?

I, not is.

I suspect it depends what you are applying for. She is probably a single person now for most purposes.

I would put single as if she were in an accident and the police find from her driving license she is married then they would go looking at the registered address for a next of kin to inform.

Hope she has used the right web site to renew her licence and not the one that scams you to pay

I admit I know nothing around the laws and legality of it but - Surely a death certificate nulls the marriage certificate? You have to have 2 living people to be married, practically? As in, she would be able to marry again without the need for divorce? So legally she is not married?

Just tell her that if she would like to be Mrs then tick the married box. Or go by Ms.

Just tell her that if she would like to be Mrs then tick the married box. Or go by Ms.

FGS. If you want to be "Mrs" you tick the "Mrs" box in the "title" section.

Marital status is a completely separate issue.

Widows and divorcees are perfectly entitled to use "Mrs" if they want to, despite no longer being married.
to be fair ANYONE can use Mrs if they want, even if never married or even if a man. It has no legal basis at all.

True enough @burnoutbabe