Our services to you start when you contact us, whether by telephone, by calling personally or via our web site; and extend often way beyond the day of the funeral.

On initial contact we will ask for preliminary details, whereupon if the deceased has died at home or in a private nursing home we will advise the conveyance of the deceased to our Private Chapel.

We would then ask, at the time and place to suit the family, for the funeral director to call and arrange the funeral to a standard and procedure that meets the needs and requirements of those concerned.

Costs & Charges

In all aspects of the funeral arrangements our staff will point out the procedures and legal requirements.

Whilst arranging the funeral, we will advise on costs and charges to be incurred, culminating in a full written estimate that should be agreed and signed so that you feel confident with the funeral commitment you have arranged.

The funeral account itself is divided into two separate parts, the Funeral Directors Charges and the disbursements. These contain our professional fees and overhead costs, which include the provision of a 24 hour a day on call rota, our professional services in making the funeral arrangements and arranging documentation and necessary personal attendances, the conveyance of the deceased to our private chapel rest rooms and the use of the same until the day of the funeral.

Relatives and friends will often wish to visit the deceased and pay their last respects before the day of the funeral, on the specific request of the family.

Hygienic treatment and attendances to the deceased are also considered to be very important by our company. The last time you saw a loved one may have been a distressing memory, perhaps in hospital or for the purposes of identification. In any event we believe that, in asking us to look after a member of your family, you would like to be certain that the best that could be done for your relative has been done whether you wish to visit the deceased before the funeral or not.

Hearse and Limousines

During 2005 and 2006 the company have built a new fleet of brand new Jaguars. This includes a hearse, 2 Limousines and 2 luxury Jaguar estates. These additions to the fleet have cost upwards of £400,000, and ensure the top quality service for which they are known continues.

The hearse for the funeral with chauffeur and sufficient bearers are also an essential part of our service to you, especially when your family's request is to go into church or place of worship.

Limousines are charged for separately. This ensures that the family is not charged for something they may not need or want. The charge for the limousines is fully inclusive to cover transport from the address at which your family requires to be picked up, through to your return to the final destination, within a limited distance. Each limousine is chauffeur driven and will normally carry up to six mourners. .

Disbursements

Disbursements are essentially fees that we pay out on behalf of the family, ie: doctor's fees where appropriate, Crematorium/Cemetery fees and Parochial fees etc. Our written estimate will detail the approximate cost of any disbursements. However, you will appreciate that we will have no direct control over these charges and they could therefore be subject to slight variations. These costs can then be settled by one single payment, rather than by many different bills to be settled by the estate.

Doctors Fee or Cremation Forms

No one can be cremated until the cause of death is definitely known. There are two cremation certificates (forms B&C). Each must be signed by a different doctor. These certificates must be paid for and listed under disbursements on our estimate and account. The cremation certificates are not required when death is referred to the coroner.

Help with Funeral Costs

The following information should be treated as a general guidance. We are not able to guarantee the availability of a loan, but we do understand how the Department of Social Services makes a decision.

Who is Entitled to Help?

You may receive help if there is not enough money to pay for the funeral and you are responsible for making the funeral arrangements and you or your partner are receiving any of the following benefits:-

• Income Support
• Housing Benefit
• Family Credit
• Council Tax Benefit

Check what amount of money is available from:

The estate of the person who has died, such as money from bank or building society accounts.

Any insurance policies or charities, lump sum payments made by a pension scheme or relatives, (either yours or those of the person who has died).

Any savings you have in a bank or building society, National Savings (including certificates and premium bonds) or in cash at home.

The savings may be in your name or the name of your partner. The Widows Payments of does not count as savings.

The social fund may make a contribution towards the cost of a simple funeral within the United Kingdom. This includes:-

• Bringing the body home if the person died away from home but within the United Kingdom
• The Death Certificate
• A standard coffin
• The Hearse for the coffin and bearers
• Flowers from the person who is arranging the funeral ·
• Contribution towards fees of funeral director
• Chaplain and organist fee for simple funeral
• Cemetery fee or Crematorium fee
• Doctors fees

What You Need to Know in Times of Bereavement

If death occurs at home: When death takes place at home there is usually a kind friend, neighbour or relative able to attend to duties in the sick room.

Inform the doctor: As soon as possible inform the doctor that death has occurred. He/she may write out the Medical Certificate of Death when he/she visits the house, or may request you attend the surgery for this purpose.

When death occurs in hospital: When death happens in hospital the procedure is very similar. Apply to the hospital for the Medical Certificate of Death and not your family doctor.

The Coroner: In cases where the death has been reported to the Coroner, the procedure is somewhat different. The Coroner and his officers are working your interest. No doctor will issue a Medical Certificate or Death. This will be sent by the Coroner to the Registrar's Office in the district where the death occurred, after contact has been made with the Coroner's office.

How To Register a Death

Who can Register:

1. Close relative of the deceased
2. Relative in attendance during last illness
3. A relative living in the district where death occurred
4. A person present at death

The person causing the disposal:

1. Documents Required
2. Medical Certificate of Death
3. Medical Card if available or
4. Birth Certificate and information regarding date of birth

Information required to Register:

1. Date and place of death
2. Full name of deceased (maiden name if applicable)
3. Date and place of birth
4. Occupation and home address
5. If married, full name and occupation of surviving spouse

Certificates

• Disposal Certificate for the Funeral Director
• Social Security Certificate to be handed in at the D.S.S. Offices with any pension books
• Copies of Entry of Death for bank, insurance, solicitors

How to Obtain Probate

What is Probate? When someone dies somebody has to deal with their estate (the money, property and possessions left) by collecting in all the money, paying any debts and distributing the estate to those entitled.

The Probate Registry issues the document which is called A GRANT OF PRESENTATION.

There are three types of grant,

1. Probate issued to one or more of the executors names in the will.
2. Letters of Administration (with will) issued when there is a will, but no executor named or unable to deal with the estate.
3. Letters of Administration issued when the deceased has not made a will or it is not valid.

Why is a grant necessary?

Organisations holding money in the deceased's name need to know the money is to be paid. The distribution of the estate is the responsibility of the person named on the deed.

Is grant always needed?

A grant is sometimes not needed if the deceased's money will be released without the holder seeing a grant, when the amount held is small and there are no complications.

Consult a Solicitor

In most circumstances, it is advisable for you to consult a solicitor both to relieve you of many worries and to take control of wills, problems of intestacy, outstanding debts, grants and letters of administration. A solicitor could save you a great deal of unnecessary trouble and eventually save you money. If known that a will was made, it is important that the contents be ascertained as soon as possible after death as it may contain instructions regarding the funeral arrangements. A will may be among personal papers, with the bank or solicitor for safe keeping. If a solicitor has been consulted by the deceased in the recent past it is important that you contact them without delay.

Floral Tributes

The gentle beauty of flowers expresses your personal remembrance and brings comfort to the bereaved.

Donations to Charity

If donations to charity are requested in lieu of flowers we will accept and list donations on your behalf and forward them in due course to a charity of your choice.

Cremated Remains

At the time of making funeral arrangements, it is not always easy to realise the emotional benefit that is gained after the funeral by having somewhere to go, a place that you and your family can go back to, knowing that a loved one is there.

It has only recently been acknowledged that simply having a relative's cremated remains scattered or buried in a garden or remembrance does not assist the healing process after the funeral. Today most cemeteries and crematoria that are administered by local councils offer the facilities of small graves that can be purchased solely for cremated remains.

These "Cremated Remains" graves can be visited by your family allowing you to pay your respects and mark the grave with a headstone.

Memorials

At the time of making arrangements for a funeral, it is not always easy or necessary to determine what your future memorial requirement will be. In the case of existing memorials, it will probably be necessary to remove the headstone from the grave prior to the funeral.

When the funeral has taken place it can take some months, depending on the condition of the ground, before the grave will be ready to take the original headstone or a new one.

During this period of settlement, it is recommended where possible, that the Monumental Masons remove the memorial back to their yard for safe keeping. This also reduces costs in the longer term should the memorial require additional inscriptions.

Take Care With That Final Gift

A memorial is not just a marker erected over a grave to remind us of the name of the deceased, it is a lasting symbol of remembrance, a tribute to a life now ended and perhaps a final gift to someone dearly loved. Choose a design and material to meet the regulations of the cemetery or churchyard, harmonise with the surroundings, a choose a suitable inscription to withstand the weather: (Remember, perhaps a possible future inscription in matching lettering). When comparing prices, make sure that the size, style of lettering and all fees have been included. Take extreme care and check thoroughly any inscription spellings. The layout is usually left to the stonemason.

Richard Finch & Sons ©

77 Military Road, Northampton, NN1 3ET, Telephone: 01604 639444, Fax: 01604 639445, Email Us

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