This article is provided by Sydney Coffins. Sydney Coffins is a memorial product and funeral provider in Australia, specialising in unique and personalised coffins, and caskets.

Arranging a funeral may be the last thing you want to do. We offer a checklist which we hope will make the process easier.

Step 1. Depending on where death has occurred

Death in a Hospital, hospice, aged care facility, nursing home:

A death in a facility will most likely be handled by a professional staff member. Most facilities have a mortuary to keep the deceased while you contact a funeral home to begin the funeral planning process.

Death at Home:

If the death is unexpected then contact 000 and request an ambulance.

If the death was expected then you will need to contact your regular GP or the medical center and ask them to send a doctor as soon as possible.  A funeral cannot commence without a doctor’s certificate of cause of death which a doctor must complete.

Step 2. Death Certificate

Once a doctor’s certificate has been issued a Death certificate will be issued by the Registry of Births, Deaths, and Marriages. This will now allow for a funeral to be planned.

Step 3. Organ Donation

If you know that the deceased wished to donate their organs then the next of kin should move quickly to make their intention possible. The next of kin will need to give consent before organ donation can go ahead. Organ donation cannot go ahead without consent from the next of kin.

Step 4. Transferal of the body

The body will need to be transferred to a morgue. The morgue will either be in a private or public facility. If you have a prepaid funeral agreement then that particular funeral home will now take over. If you have not chosen any funeral home we invite you to call Sydney Coffins and we will assist you with the funeral.

Step 5. Questions we will ask you to ascertain a funeral suitable for your financial needs.

– Did the deceased person leave behind a will with any directions in regards to funeral arrangements?

– If there are no instructions included in the will the deceased’s executor  (usually a close family member or next of kin) will take the role in making the funeral planning decisions.

– Were there any financial contracts made to pay the funeral or policies which can be used to pay for the funeral? For example funeral insurance, insurance policies, superannuation, private health policies?

– Did the deceased person purchase a burial plot already?

– Is there sufficient money to afford a funeral and is this money accessible in the near future? A funeral can range between $2,000 – $150,000.

Step 5. Funeral planning questions

The following questions will be asked to plan the best funeral possible to suit the needs of the deceased and the family members.

– Preference for a burial or cremation funeral?

– Preference for a religious or non-religious service?

– Select memorial items: coffin, casket, and an urn if a cremation funeral is chosen.

– Preference for final resting place location and type of final resting place.

Step 6. Notify institutions

Contact government departments, banks, utility companies, local government, telecommunication, insurance, clubs and other memberships which the deceased had dealings with.

Step 6. Close or remove deceased person name from mailing lists, social media accounts, and memberships.

In the current social media world. Many people place information about our lives online for example photos and messages. Deactivating or deleting any social media accounts connected to the deceased person is an option that may need to be considered.