What to Do When a Death Occurs & You Choose Cremation
When someone you love passes away, there are a lot of tasks to check off, from notifying family and friends to ordering death certificates to making sure their home and pets are cared for. And while many people have traditional funeral and burial services, others are opting for direct cremation and a memorial service at a later date.
Even when you choose direct cremation and a memorial service later, there are several important things that need to happen in the days following the death. These critical tasks ensure that you have what you need to move forward with a variety of other tasks, from closing accounts to beginning to plan a memorial service.
Request Death Certificates
Death certificates are important documents needed when a person passes away. They are required for a number of tasks. The county where the person died administers death certificates for a small fee. You can request several copies to make sure you have enough to close bank accounts, claim life insurance benefits and more. We recommend ordering a minimum of three copies of this important document. You may need more, which you can request when you need them, but you will have to wait for them to arrive. It’s good to have at least one original, certified death certificate in your possession. Others can be given to banks, life insurance companies and so on.
Notify Social Security
One of the first places to call to notify about the death of a loved one is Social Security. As soon as you can following the death, you should call Social Security to notify them. By notifying Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid are also notified, so benefits can stop being administered. There may also be spousal death benefits that you are eligible to receive. Talking to a Social Security representative will allow you to ask questions and better understand what will take place regarding your benefits or those of your loved one.
Find the Executor & the Will
The executor of the estate is the person who is assigned to carry out the will of the deceased and close their estate. Who is the executor? Hopefully, you have discussed this prior to your relative’s death. If you are not the executor, you will need to get in touch with that person. If you know your relative’s attorney, they may know who that is, and they may have a copy of the will. The estate attorney should be knowledgeable about the legal filings and activities that need to take place following the death, so if you need or want to select a different attorney, make sure they are well versed in estate law.
Write the Obituary
The obituary provides a record of the person’s life, hobbies, service and close family members, and it serves as a way to communicate the passing of your loved one to the public or to the person’s family and friends. Let our blog post on writing an obituary be your guide to obituary writing. If you aren’t skilled in writing, ask another family member or friend for help. The obituary can be used on social media or the web, in emails to family and friends or in the newspaper. It will also be helpful for memorial service programs.
Begin Memorial Service Planning
At this point, you may be ready to begin planning a memorial service to celebrate your loved one’s life. That will include choosing a date, time and location. Other decisions about the memorial service can wait a little longer, but they may include food, program details, printed programs, handouts and more. Even without the date, time and location set, you can move forward by sending out notices about the death. Consider how you want to proceed and know that Celebrate the Memories is here to help you—when you are ready—with the memorial service materials you need.
Other Tasks
There are a number of other tasks that can wait a little longer after your loved one’s death. Those tasks may include the following, depending on whether you are the executor of the estate:
- Tracking down all assets of their estate
- Notifying financial institutions of the death
- Canceling cell phone service (for which you may need a PIN and cell phone passwords)
- Forwarding mail to the executor
- Closing digital accounts, such as email and social media
We hope that this information about what to do when a death occurs will help you move forward with the things you need to do after a loved one dies. Sharishments cares about you and your family, and our thoughts are with you at this difficult time.
