By Lepho Mantanga
What immediate steps must be taken on someone’s death?
Death is inevitable, and it is the one thing that is certain in our future. We will all die at some point, and arrangements need to take place for our final send-off. Most people would prefer a dignified funeral to achieve this. The majority of us, at some stage in our lifetimes, will need to either plan or play an important role in the funeral arrangements of a loved one to ensure that they take place in a dignified and respectful manner. It should also be noted that funerals are conducted differently in different cultures.
In certain circumstances, the deceased would have drafted a Will prior to their death, which may also give directives on how they wish to be buried, stating their wishes with respect to their body and the proceedings of the day of the funeral.
Funeral planning may cause a lot of conflict among families. The deceased’s closest relatives or next of kin are typically responsible for arranging the funeral. This is usually done by observing the customs that are unique to the deceased’s culture.
These customs, however, still need to be governed by the law. In customary law, for example, a wife has a legal duty to plan their husband’s funeral. In the past, such responsibilities were only given to males in the family. In addition, only males were allowed to be the beneficiaries of the deceased estate. This was known as the male primogeniture rule. However, this rule was excluded and declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court in the case of Shiluban v Nwamitwa. The court ruled that it was unconstitutional to exclude females from benefitting should the opportunity arise.
Who is responsible for making funeral arrangements?
The next-of-kin usually bears the responsibility to arrange the funeral, unless the deceased expressed a wish in their Will for who should take responsibility (please note, however, that such wish is not enforceable by law). The general principle is that the following hierarchy is used to determine who is responsible for these arrangements:
- The legal spouse to the deceased if the deceased is deemed to be married;
- If unmarried, then their children;
- If unmarried and no children, the deceased’s parents, siblings, authorised guardians or aunts and uncles to the deceased.
The funeral parlour is central to this process. The role of the funeral parlour is to make arrangements easier and stress-free for the family. Firstly, the parlour takes care of all administrative aspects, such as documentation necessary for the reporting of the death, i.e. medical reports pertaining to the death, registration of the death at Home Affairs, and providing a selection of coffins. They also attend to cemetery or cremation bookings and further store and prepare the deceased’s body for burial. Hence, it is important to find a funeral parlour that is best suited to meet the family’s needs and cultural requirements.
The person tasked with the funeral arrangements ought to provide the funeral parlour with a copy of the deceased’s identity document, the next-of-kin’s identity document, funeral policy details and any other essentials that are required for the preparations for the funeral.
They further need to advise the parlour on the following: the type of funeral they require, taking into consideration whether a burial or cremation should take place, where the funeral service will be held (in a church, home or chapel), the catering and any other arrangements required for the type of service they need, and more.
The costs of the funeral
Due to the high costs of funerals, it is important that the person in charge of planning the funeral exercises caution when preparing for the funeral. They would have to check whether the deceased has a funeral policy, and if so, what it is worth, how long it will take to pay out, and what documents are needed in order to claim from the policy. As certain policies may only cover certain things regarding the funeral, due consideration must be given to the exact terms of the policy and proper financial planning.
When the above information has been obtained, the person planning the funeral must provide this information to the funeral parlour or advise the funeral parlour of the relevant funeral policy.
The person who has the rights and responsibility to arrange the funeral is the person who must hire the funeral parlour and ensure that the funeral costs are paid (whether from the proceeds of a funeral policy, or from the estate, or by instalments, or otherwise).
In certain circumstances, the deceased may not have a policy, and the family cannot afford to pay for the funeral. In these circumstances, the administrator of the deceased estate may utilise funds from the estate in a situation where the estate has been reported, and an arrangement is made with the parlour to invoice the deceased estate. This method is not always possible, as the winding up of an estate can be a lengthy process, so a loan may need to be arranged by the person planning the funeral.
Where the deceased estate or the family is unable to afford the funeral at all, and a loan is not possible, the local municipality may assist.
In these circumstances, the family will apply for what is called a pauper’s funeral by first ensuring that the death is reported and registered, with a copy of the identity document submitted. Should this application be approved, the municipality will assist the family by providing the necessary essentials (for example, the coffin). The municipality will not pay for meals, funeral parlour expenses, or tombstones. The body will be kept in the state mortuary until the funeral.
What happens when the deceased used to receive a social grant?
A copy of the deceased’s death certificate must be presented at the pay point where the deceased was receiving their social grant. Where the money was paid into the deceased’s bank account by SASSA, a copy of the death certificate must be taken to the SASSA offices.
It is illegal to continue to receive a social grant on behalf of a deceased person. Imprisonment or a fine may be imposed should the court find someone guilty of this act.
