Legal Rights: What to Do if You Suspect Funeral Home Negligence

If your family was harmed by the negligence of a funeral service provider, you can hold them accountable for their action or lack of action. Your family has legal rights but can be hard to know what to do if you suspect funeral home negligence. You can fight back against negligent treatment of the deceased, theft, lack of contracted services, and other forms of negligence.

A funeral service is a family’s final opportunity to say goodbye to a loved one and should run as smoothly as possible. When a funeral home is negligent, it can have a profound emotional and financial impact on a family that is already experiencing emotional vulnerability. A funeral home negligence lawyer in your area can help you pursue compensation at no upfront cost to your family.

You Can Pursue Compensation for Your Funeral Home Negligence Case

legal rights in funeral home negligence cases

Many different acts could constitute negligence in the funeral home industry. If they violate your rights and the laws and regulations of the state, you can pursue the funeral home for financial recovery. 

Mishandling Your Loved One’s Body or Cremains

Florida Statutes § 382.007 dictates the proper handling of human remains. It requires appropriate transporting, treatment, covering, and disposition. You could be entitled to compensation if your loved one was lost, mislabeled, misidentified, cremains were comingled, or otherwise mishandled.

Burial or Gravesite Misappropriation

Examples of funeral home negligence related to final disposition of your loved one include burying or cremating the wrong body, cremation or burial without consent, wrong-site burial, moving remains post-final disposition, and using the same burial site multiple times. 

Illegally Profiting From Your Family’s Loss

Unscrupulous acts that lead to profit for the service provider can include selling a decedent’s organs or other body parts, theft of the decedent’s property (jewelry, apparel, watches, gold teeth, etc.). Illegal profiting also includes pressuring a family to purchase unneeded services or packages containing unwanted components.

Funeral home misconduct can also include having your loved one placed in the wrong coffin, not preventing vandalism, or not receiving the services you paid for.

Act Soon to Protect Your Family’s Right to File Your Lawsuit

Knowing when to consult a funeral home negligence attorney is an important part of your fight for compensation. You have a limited time to file a lawsuit for funeral home negligence. According to Florida Statutes § 95.11, you generally have four years to file a lawsuit for breach of contract. However, your case’s statute of limitations may fall under a different timeframe, depending on the details of the case. 

Failure to file your lawsuit on time could prevent you from filing it at all, lead to its immediate dismissal, or cause a complete breakdown in settlement negotiations. A local attorney can help you meet the appropriate filing deadline. 

Damages You Can Request for Funeral Home Negligence

If negligent service led to difficulty during your loved one’s funeral, burial, or cremation, the funeral home could be financially liable. Your recoverable damages can include:

• Fees paid to the negligent funeral home
• The costs of reburying your loved one
• Compensation for lost or stolen property
• Your family’s mental and emotional trauma
• Punitive damages (rarely awarded), if applicable

Nothing can atone for negligence that caused emotional harm to your family at an already trying time. You are entitled to compensation, though, from the negligent care provider. A funeral home negligence attorney can help you document your recoverable damages, avoid leaving anything out, and fight for maximum financial recovery. 

Funeral Home Negligence Lawyers Can Build Persuasive Evidence Collections

On your own, it can be hard to collect evidence related to a loved one’s demise and funeral. A lawyer familiar with cases like yours will understand the type of evidence your case needs, including:

• Your loved one’s death certificate
• Bills, receipts, and invoices
• Lay and expert witness statements
• All relevant correspondence

Your evidence collection can also help your lawyer assess and prove the monetary value of your compensation request.

Explore Your Legal Options After Experiencing Funeral Home Negligence

funeral home negligence claims and settlements

When a funeral home acted negligently and/or engaged in unscrupulous practices, you have rights. To hold them accountable for their negligence, you can:

• File an insurance claim or lawsuit for compensation
• Report the negligence to the appropriate authority (My Florida CFO’s Funeral, Cemetery, and Consumer Services)
• Collect evidence, including receipts for services 

You also have the right to speak to the legal team at a local law firm about your professional malpractice allegations. They can help you understand your rights and build a strong case against the at-fault funeral home.

Contact Our Funeral Home Negligence Team to Get Started

If your family was traumatized by a funeral home error, our client-focused law firm will pursue monetary compensation on your behalf. Our lawyers can help you explore your legal rights and explain what to do if you suspect funeral home negligence. Let us fight for you and your family today.

Learn more about your right to financial recovery and the funeral home’s legal obligations. Contact our consultation team at the Law Offices of Wolf & Pravato at (954) 633-8270 today.