Addressing the question of compensation, it is in England & Wales governed by legislation.
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1976/30/section/1A
Where a claim arises consequent upon a fatal accident caused by the fault of a third party or parties, there are three elements:
(1) Damages for "Bereavement" fixed by law. It is currently £12980 -- it may have been a lower sum in 2011.
(2) Funeral Expenses.
(3) Damages awarded to those financially dependent on the deceased at the date of his death. That is a slide rule exercise. A percentage of the diseased annual earnings is assumed to reflect the diseased's contribution to maintain those financially dependent upon him. Widows not in employment and children being obvious examples. The rule of thumb when I dealt with such cases, was two-thirds of the diseased's net income. That sum is then multiplied by a number set out in a table reflecting the diseased age, the dependent's age and the current yield on 10 year Gilts.
The hard and fast rule in England and Wales, is that fatal accidents are far cheaper for the insurers of the third party held negligently responsible than, for example, causing serious and permanent disability.
In a fatal accident case where any of the dependents are children, i.e. aged under 18, any settlement, including the sums apportioned for the children, has to be approved by the Court.
There can be only one settlement!
A settlement may not preclude the third party who has paid out, later seeking to recover a contribution from another party also considered responsible. There may, however be costs implications for bringing any separate claim. An added complication is that there are strict time limits for claiming a contribution. I may be wrong but I have a vague feeling it is (or was) 2 years.