Full Service Mortuary Solutions From NMS
Your funeral home gets a call from a local family, letting your team know that one of their loved ones has passed away. The deceased may be in their home, just miles from your location. These situations are familiar and your funeral home can step right into action, arranging for transport. But as you know, not every scenario is as straightforward.
There are times when a family’s loved one might die unexpectedly while on vacation across the country. Perhaps the individual was living in another state for their retirement and expressed wishes to return to their home state for burial. These situations will require domestic mortuary shipping.
What Is the Domestic Mortuary Shipping Process?
Domestic mortuary shipping is needed when a loved one passes away in another state and the family needs to return their remains home. There are two options: ground transportation or shipping the remains by air. This is referred to as domestic mortuary, or funeral, shipping.
Here is the play-by-play:
- The Receiving Funeral Home (RFH) will connect to a funeral home where the deceased is located, known as the Shipping Funeral Home (SFH).
- The SFH will prepare the deceased for transportation.
- The RFH will accept the remains, prepare the deceased for viewing or burial, and organize services per the family’s wishes.
While it is simple on paper, as you know, there are many details and steps along the way that must be handled and followed with the utmost care and attention. A misstep with shipping remains can cause extra stress—and extra expenses—for a family that only wants to bring their deceased loved one home.
Domestic Mortuary Shipping Questions
These are just some of the considerations when it comes to coordinating details between two funeral homes in different locations, while keeping the family informed.
- Timing
Timing is a central concern, as it impacts next steps: How long will it take to return the deceased home? When should you advise the family to schedule services? Are there any potential delays?
- Paperwork
Every place of death has different paperwork: embalming and cremation authorizations, releases, identification requirements, death certificates. It is critical to understand the requirements specific to each location.
- Preparation of Remains
How will the remains be shipped? Will they be embalmed? How will the remains be packed for transport?
All of these details must be thoughtfully considered, finalized, and executed.
Find a Mortuary Shipping Partner You Can Trust
With all of the nuances of domestic mortuary shipping, and the potential problems if it isn’t handled correctly, it is so important to find a partner you can trust in the deceased’s location of death. When you work with a mortuary services provider like National Mortuary Shipping, you unlock access to our network of trusted and vetted funeral homes around the world.
Discover how our domestic mortuary shipping services can be an asset to your funeral home, allowing you to focus on serving families while our experts handle all the details.
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