Funeral Home Litigation
When your loved one is mishandled during removal or transport
After a death, someone comes to take your loved one from the home, hospital, or nursing facility. Later the body may be moved again, to a funeral home, a crematory, a cemetery, or another city. Most families never see these steps. Sometimes they do, or they learn later that their loved one was left uncovered, handled roughly, damaged, or moved without the right paperwork.
Florida law sets rules for every one of these moves.
Call (305) 209-0384 Read the questions first ↓
Read the questions first
Florida's transport and handling rules
- Covered, with dignity. All human remains transported or stored must be "completely covered and at all times treated with dignity and respect" (§ 497.386(4), Fla. Stat.).
- A proper container and a permit. A body transported by a common carrier or any agency or person authorized to carry bodies must be in a container that prevents seepage of fluids and escape of odors, and must travel with a properly completed burial-transit permit (§ 497.386(3)).
- Identified at removal. The licensee responsible for removal must make sure a tag or other identification is attached to the ankle or wrist when the body leaves the place of death (§ 497.171(1)(d)).
- Permission to take the body. A licensee may not take possession of a body without permission from the legally authorized person (§ 497.152(8)(c)).
- Licensed removal services. Florida provides for the licensing of removal services that operate independently of funeral homes (§ 497.385).
- Penalties. Violating the container-and-permit rule is a first-degree misdemeanor (§ 497.386(7)). Violating the covered-and-dignity rule is a third-degree felony (§ 497.386(8)). Violating handling laws is also grounds for discipline (§ 497.152(8)(a)).
What the law may provide
Florida lets any person bring a civil action against a licensee that violates Chapter 497, for actual damages, punitive damages as the common law allows, and other relief (§ 497.169(1)). Depending on the facts, a family may also have claims for negligence, breach of the funeral contract, or interference with a loved one's remains. Your family's emotional harm matters. The Florida Supreme Court is now considering when Florida law allows recovery for emotional harm without a physical injury, and we will explain how the law stands for your situation.
What to keep and request
- The name of the company that came, the vehicle, and the date and time.
- Names of witnesses, and any doorbell, phone, or security video. Save the original file.
- The release log from the hospital or nursing facility, if there was one.
- The funeral contract and any paper showing who hired the removal company.
- A written request for the removal, transfer, and transit-permit records.
The deadline
Two years. Florida law gives a negligence claim two years (§ 95.11(5)(a)). Some claims may carry a longer period, but no family should bet on that. We treat two years from the day it happened as the deadline in every case, and you should too. If you only just found out, call anyway: when the clock started is a question we answer case by case.
What to do first
Write down what you saw while it is fresh, save any video, and keep the paperwork. Talk with a lawyer before filing a state complaint or signing anything. See What to do right now. If the problem happened on a trip abroad, see Repatriation and international shipping.
Questions families ask
The company that picked up the body was not the funeral home. Who is responsible?
It depends on who had the body at that moment and who hired whom. The removal company, the funeral home, or both may be involved. We trace custody step by step through the records.
Is mishandling a body a crime?
Florida makes violating the covered-and-dignity rule a third-degree felony. Whether a particular act falls within that rule depends on the facts and is for law enforcement and prosecutors to decide. A family's civil case is separate.
A neighbor recorded the removal. Should we keep it?
Yes. Ask for a copy of the original file, with the date, and keep it private. Do not post it. Let your lawyer decide how it is used.
How long do I have?
Two years from the day it happened is the deadline we use in every case. Video and logs can be erased, so earlier is better.
Talk to Dennis
When you are ready, call or send a WhatsApp message, in English or Spanish. The office answers 24 hours.
You can read about some of our past cases on our Results page.
Former Miami-Dade prosecutor · Since 2012 · Super Lawyers Rising Stars · Avvo Rating 10.0
Related
- Mishandled remainsWhen a funeral home damages, neglects, or mistreats the body of someone you loved.
- Repatriation and international shippingWhen a body shipped abroad arrives late, damaged, or is the wrong person.
- Lost or mixed-up remainsWhen remains are lost, or the family receives the wrong ashes.
- What to do right nowNine steps to protect your family and the evidence, starting today.