Formalities and Paperwork

If a death occurs outside of a medical facility immediately contact a doctor. Your next phone call should be to Gholar & Gholar Funeral Service so we can take care of all of the formalities involved. The paperwork involved when a loved one dies can unfortunately be very confusing. Therefore, as your professional funeral director we will take care of obtaining and reporting all necessary paperwork including a death certificate and burial certificate.

A sample of the services we provide on request:

• Ordering copies of death certificates and obtaining death records from the Office of Vital Records
• Selecting a burial site and obtaining a burial permit
  
• Scheduling a clergyman or other public speaker for the funeral service
  
• Notifying the life insurance company of the death and applying for any applicable benefits

• Notifying employer
  

• Filing for life insurance claims
  

In order to be able to handle official tasks for you, we need the following documents:

• Identification of the deceased (passport, driver's license, state ID card, etc.)
• For singles or minors: a certified birth certificate copy
• For married couples: a certified marriage certificate copy
• For divorced couples: a legal divorce decree or certified copy of an excerpt from Vital Records
• For widowers: a certified copy of an excerpt from Vital Records showing the spouse has died, or a certified marriage certificate copy and the spouse's death certificate 
• Insurance card from the respective life insurance company 
• Notice of retirement benefits (insurance policy number), if already retired
• Other insurance policy documents, e.g. life insurance
• Membership or contribution records from other associations, unions and organizations granting death benefits or assistance 
• Preplanned Funeral agreements, if available
• Last will or deposit certificate for the local court or notary 
• A burial certificate, if available

• All documents issued by a physician, especially the death certificate