When Death Enters Your Home - A Practical Guide
Every municipality in South Africa has a set of cemetery and crematorium by-laws at its disposal, which are published in a government gazette.
It is a bulky document made available to the public for perusal at cemetery offices.
I experienced over many years in a local authority that people have little or no knowledge to organize a beloved relative's funeral and/or cremation on their OWN, and it is there where exploitation starts.
Yes, there is NO legislation in the world prohibiting an individual to arrange last mentioned.
Funeral business is certainly one of the oldest professions and for many years newspapers revealed shocking facts of irregularities by SOME undertakers, who make themselves guilty of malpractises, and it still continues.
It is of great importance to follow this article where some of the following issues are to be discussed: Funeral arrangements Funeral policies Are caskets/coffins really expensive? Tombstones Why do graves subside? Indigent burials/cremations Lenghty questions, especially with regard to cremations are answered CLEARLY and TRUTHFULLY Exploitation by SOME undertakers Private cemeteries Burial of ashes in all existing types of graves Organ and tissue donation Are municipalities planning excavations of human remains in full cemeteries to allow space for new interment.
Death is a traumatic event and those who stay behind, are in a state of shock.
There confidence is placed in undertakers, for proper guidance and assistance and the public do not want to be exploited.
When a person passes away relative's must present the following documents to the undertaker: The identity document of the deceased, the full names of the coffin/casket bearers, a list, containing a Bible verse and songs to be sung, to enable the printing of funeral letters, as well as a photograph of the deceased, if preferred, a grave reservation certificate, if you are in possession of one.
(The certificate is issued by the municipality when a family has paid for the grave in advance.
) a funeral policy, with evidence of premiums paid, or proof of a paid-up policy, the last three months' bank statements must indicate that the debit orders have been paid.
A funeral policy is VALID and may be presented to ANY undertaker.
Berieved families thus have the right to obtain quotations from more than one undertaker and they shall be surprised to see the great differences in funeral prices.
By doing last mentioned, families CAN control funeral costs.
SOME funeral undertakers, first determine the value of the policy before any arrangements starts.
It should be done the other way around.
Why? Those funeral undertakers who intend to exploit a family, then knows HOW, and WHERE to load the funeral expenses.
It can start and end by the coffin price, and will be broadly discussed in a article to follow this one.
Undertakers are responsible for: the removal of a body from the premises and safekeeping thereof, registration of the death at the Department of Home Affairs, acquisition of original death certificates, and the provision of additional true certified copies.
It is a bulky document made available to the public for perusal at cemetery offices.
I experienced over many years in a local authority that people have little or no knowledge to organize a beloved relative's funeral and/or cremation on their OWN, and it is there where exploitation starts.
Yes, there is NO legislation in the world prohibiting an individual to arrange last mentioned.
Funeral business is certainly one of the oldest professions and for many years newspapers revealed shocking facts of irregularities by SOME undertakers, who make themselves guilty of malpractises, and it still continues.
It is of great importance to follow this article where some of the following issues are to be discussed: Funeral arrangements Funeral policies Are caskets/coffins really expensive? Tombstones Why do graves subside? Indigent burials/cremations Lenghty questions, especially with regard to cremations are answered CLEARLY and TRUTHFULLY Exploitation by SOME undertakers Private cemeteries Burial of ashes in all existing types of graves Organ and tissue donation Are municipalities planning excavations of human remains in full cemeteries to allow space for new interment.
Death is a traumatic event and those who stay behind, are in a state of shock.
There confidence is placed in undertakers, for proper guidance and assistance and the public do not want to be exploited.
When a person passes away relative's must present the following documents to the undertaker: The identity document of the deceased, the full names of the coffin/casket bearers, a list, containing a Bible verse and songs to be sung, to enable the printing of funeral letters, as well as a photograph of the deceased, if preferred, a grave reservation certificate, if you are in possession of one.
(The certificate is issued by the municipality when a family has paid for the grave in advance.
) a funeral policy, with evidence of premiums paid, or proof of a paid-up policy, the last three months' bank statements must indicate that the debit orders have been paid.
A funeral policy is VALID and may be presented to ANY undertaker.
Berieved families thus have the right to obtain quotations from more than one undertaker and they shall be surprised to see the great differences in funeral prices.
By doing last mentioned, families CAN control funeral costs.
SOME funeral undertakers, first determine the value of the policy before any arrangements starts.
It should be done the other way around.
Why? Those funeral undertakers who intend to exploit a family, then knows HOW, and WHERE to load the funeral expenses.
It can start and end by the coffin price, and will be broadly discussed in a article to follow this one.
Undertakers are responsible for: the removal of a body from the premises and safekeeping thereof, registration of the death at the Department of Home Affairs, acquisition of original death certificates, and the provision of additional true certified copies.
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