Cremation Services

Cremation is defined as the process used in the disposition of a deceased human body, whereby the body is exposed to extreme heat until it is reduced to granular particles. These resulting particles are referred to as the remains. This popular mode of disposition upon death has many advantages over the traditional funeral process of cemetery burial. A cremation service is usually simpler, more expedient, and less costly.

Once a family has chosen cremation (or the deceased has pre-chosen cremation), they must address several considerations in connection with the cremation service. They must choose a service provider, the type of cremation service and the permanent urn for the remains. Unfortunately, unless the deceased prepared a burial plan before death, the family must decide these matters quickly. The period of bereavement is a difficult time to be a proactive consumer. But it is also a time when the bereaved can most easily be misled.

Whether a consumer chooses a funeral director or a cremation provider to help with the planning of the cremation service, he or she should ascertain if the provider is a member of an industry association and thus governed by a recognized code of ethics. This consumer should know if the crematory's operators are certified by a certifying organization that is recognized for assuring proper procedures. He or she should also check with the association and other local governing bodies, like the Better Business Bureau, to be sure that the provider has no record of business misconduct.

If the consumer chooses a funeral home, he or she should find out if the funeral home has the capability to perform its own cremations, or if it contracts out those services to a third party cremation facility. If they use another facility, that facility must be investigated, as well.

Types of Services

There are several types of cremation services to choose from. They range from the most simple and basic to the traditional full-service type. The basic cremation service usually only involves the cremation processing. There is no ceremony and commonly no burial or storage requirements. This involves the least expense, time and planning. Some families may desire a cremation with a memorial service. The memorial service can be as simple or as grand as the family wishes. The most involved service is the funeral with cremation, because this involves all of the elements of a funeral. A family will choose this option when they want the deceased to be viewed in a full ceremony in addition to cremation.

Finally, a person may choose to cremate and scatter the remains. This is most commonly done by sea. But the remains are sometimes scattered over land, as well. This is allowed in most states. But there may be limitations.

Types of Containers

A consumer must be concerned with how the deceased will be contained both during the cremation processing and after. Not so long ago, cremation providers required the families of the deceased to purchase a casket to contain the body during cremation. This was an unfair expense since the casket was immediately burned. Now federal law prohibits this practice and requires the cremation provider to offer simple, fully combustible containers.

When choosing a permanent container for the remains, there are an almost endless variety of choices. The most common choice is an urn. These come in many different materials--such as several varieties of wood, bronze, copper and stainless steel. Though the cremation provider often has resources to choose from, there are also several offerings on the Web.