MOST people would accept a donor organ if they needed one but only 27% are signed up to donate after death, research out today showed.

A poll of 1,500 people not on the organ donor register found 45% had good intentions to join but had not yet got round to it.

Almost one in five (19%) said they needed to involve their family in the decision on whether to become an organ donor.

Separate research among almost 2,000 people suggested a gap between the number who think they have signed up to be a donor (35%) and the number actually on the register (27%).

A total of 16.5 million people are currently signed up.

More than 10,000 people in the UK currently need a transplant.

However three a day on average die every year before they get one.

Health Secretary Andy Burnham said: “Most of us support organ donation and the overwhelming majority would take an organ if we needed it.

“I would urge everybody who supports organ donation to show it by signing up to the organ donor register.”

Visit www.organdonation.nhs.uk