Choosing a Funeral Director

You do not have to wait until you have the Medical Certificate before you speak to a Funeral Director. We would ask you not to confirm any date for the funeral until you know we have made an appointment with you to collect the paperwork.

When choosing a Funeral Director, you should feel comfortable and confident with them. Funeral Directors can manage all or part of the funeral arrangements. They can give advice on available options and provide support to help you make decisions. You can ask any Funeral Director for an estimated cost before making a commitment to use their services and it is reasonable to seek estimates from more than one company.

Many people now have pre-paid funeral plans which have all of their wishes pre-arranged. You may need to check if your loved one has one in place and which Funeral Director it was taken out with. The Funeral Director needs to know and discuss with you: • The name, age and religion of the person who has died • The place of death and name of the doctor who has signed the Medical Certificate • Any particular requests left by the person who has died • If burial or cremation is required (please ask your Funeral Director about the costings for each of these) • The style of coffin • The type of service, hymns, cars, flowers, newspaper notices (if any), etc.

Funeral costs are normally recoverable from the person’s estate, however the person organising the funeral will initially be responsible for paying the bill. It is advisable to check where the money will come from before you make arrangements and when the Funeral Director will require the bill to be paid. Where finances are limited you may be entitled to help with some of the funeral costs from the Social Fund. The staff in the Bereavement Office can provide an application form for this.

A list of Funeral Directors in the Somerset area is provided on Pages 21- 25 in this booklet.