An individual dies; a call goes out to the funeral home. The funeral home dispatches either a member of the staff to do what is commonly referred to as the “removal” OR, a company is dispatched that is in the business of doing removals for all the funeral homes on its register.
Now, this is not uncommon. Funeral homes have been doing this for some time. With the exception of the well established removal companies, many funeral homes recruit the lowest bidder. The lowest bidder usually hires a bunch of crazy collage kids that are looking to make a few bucks on the side and have a strange job they can talk about with their friends.
The other concern you may have is usually, if the individual is a “home removal” (Passes at the residence) the funeral home will charge for a “second man removal” This is also a so called requirement if the individual is over a certain weight. This is added cost that many families can do without and assume that there is nothing that can be done to change this or prevent the cost.
First things first, if the Family wishes to assist the individual dispatched from the funeral home to place the deceased on the removal cot, there is no law against it. All you have to do is tell the funeral home that “the family prefers to assist in placing the deceased on the cot” It is a very simple process and can assist in lowering cost. If your Funeral home representative tells you that you can’t do that, I encourage you to look for another funeral home.
Also, you might consider asking the care facility staff to assist the individual doing the removal. My experiance with any hospice facility is that they are more than eager to assist the family anyway they can.
Number two, the funeral coach. The family is attempting to save money any way they can on a service, and can’t understand why the coach costs so much. Well, I can help you resolve that. Don’t use the funeral home coach. Use a family SUV or if the deceased had a favorite 4 x 4, why not use that?. It is quite legal and cost saving. This is not only cost saving for a local burial, but also is quite cost saving should you choose to transport the deceased to anywhere within a neighboring state or close city. There is no law stating that you can not transport a loved one in a casket or out of a casket without the proper permit. If a funeral home tells you that you need to pay MORE for them to prepare the proper permits to do this, beware, this is the same permit that the funeral home prepares for them to transport or have transported.
The Limousine, First things first, in this economy, how many of us can afford a limousine? But if you choose, shop around on your own. You will be surprised the deals you can find. 3 hours is usually the minimum that Limo companies charge and services are usually about 3 hours.
Motor Escorts. Not a necessity but during a service with a great deal of participants, almost a must. Escort companies carry a great deal of insurance to do their job, and for this reason, cost a great deal. This cost SHOULD reflect on the CASH ADVANCE section of the price list. If it does not, ask why. If it is on any other section of the price list, this means the funeral home is putting their charges on top of it. Make them tell you why they feel they need to charge more.
In the end, if you feel the cost is a bit high, ask why and if the funeral home will not work with you on pricing in regards to transportation, remember, there are others out there that will be glad to.
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