When your loved one dies, it can be an overwhelming process to figure out what to do next. First, you need to make sure you loved one doesn’t have prearrangements for their cremation. If they do not have prearrangements, you need to start by figuring out how you want to handle your loved one’s direct cremation in Florida.
A direct cremation is becoming more popular day by day in Florida, especially in the south west region of Florida. This is due to the lower costs of direct cremations and also the current pandemic crisis which does not allow for congregation of people to celebrate the life of a loved one. In a direct cremation, you do not have a funeral where you view the body. Instead, your direct cremation facility will pick the body up and have it cremated directly.
Once you have figured out that you want a direct cremation in Florida for your loved one, you need to figure out which direct cremation facility you want to go with. This can be the trickiest part of the whole direct cremation process. When you google direct cremation St. Petersburg or direct cremation Trinity, you will see pages upon pages of direct cremation facilities pop up. Here are a few tips and “red flags” to be aware of and ask questions about:
Very Low Prices
- When facilities offer cremations around the $500-$600 mark there should be some alarm bells going off in your head. Most of the time, they advertise a much lower price but do not include costs like transportation, urns, or will even add unnecessary additional fees that can bring your final total easily over $2000. If something like that happens to you, know that within the state of Florida, no facility is allowed to hold a body once they pick it up. If you are not happy, its within your rights to move to another facility. You should aim for a cremation facility that starts offering prices in the high $700-$1000 range. For example, our simple cremation is $795 and it includes transportation, an urn and an obituary. https://goinghomecremations.com/affordable-cremation-services/
Crematory
- Ask them about their crematory! The very low priced direct cremation facilities will have your loved one cremated in office parks or places you would never be okay with if you saw them for yourself. Go check out this article to learn more: https://www.abc12.com/content/news/Red-flags-to-look-out-for-when-selecting-a-funeral-home-497967031.html
Their Headquarters
- We have been seeing an uptick in corporate direct cremation facilities that are not even located in Florida. That should be concerning. You want a facility where their headquarters are based in Florida to make sure they are following all rules around direct cremations in Florida.
Look Up Their Reviews on Google and Yelp
- Please look at a company’s reviews before you choose to go with them. We have seen many families be shocked at the lack of customer service or upcharges because they did not review their direct cremation facility, they chose in Florida first. For example, our facility Going Home Cremations, has over 24 five stars Google reviews. In fact, we only have five-star reviews, and its important you go with a facility that has similar numbers.
Ask Them How Long They’ve Been in Business
- We are also seeing more facilities being started by people who do not really understand the Florida direct cremation industry. It’s imperative that your facility knows the ins and outs of each city they are in. When you have a direct cremation in Florida, there are special rules for each area. For example, direct cremations in St. Petersburg can have different county fees than direct cremations in Port Charlotte. That’s why it is so important that you have a facility that can handle each city like they have lived there for their whole life. At Going Home Cremations, we have been in Southwest Florida doing cremations for over 20 years, and know the ins and outs of all the areas we service.
At Going Home Cremations, our main goal is helping families because compassion is at the heart of our care. If you are out of our service area but just want to ask questions on some facilities you are looking at for a cremation in Florida, call us! We will try and help guide you to pick a cremation facility that is dignified but offering affordable cremations.
