Arranging a Funeral in Melbourne

When someone dies, you'll feel a range of emotions depending on your relationship with the deceased person. The first thing you need to do is let your emotions out, settle your mind, and then call someone to come over and offer you comfort and support. 

In terms of how your loved one died, there are a few things you need to consider to know what steps to take first. 

If the death occurred at home and was expected:

An 'expected' death is when you know your loved one is going to pass away. They may be at home on palliative care, be suffering from a terminal illness, or have an extensive medical history. Here's what to do:

• When death occurs, call the attending doctor or palliative care team looking after your loved one
• They will arrange to verify the death and organise a medical cause of death certificate
• Once this is done, contact us 0429 920 241 (24 hours/7 days a week) so we can arrange to transfer them into our care

You are more than welcome to have some private time with your loved one. All you need to do is let us know what time you'd like us to arrive. 

If the death was unexpected or sudden:

When death is sudden or accidental, or the cause of death is unknown, you must notify the police and/or paramedics to attend. 

Please don't move or disturb their body in any way without the authorisation of the police or coroner. 

The police will contact the Coroner's Office and arrange for your loved one to be transferred from the place of death to the Coroner's mortuary. 

The Coroner will investigate and determine the cause and circumstances of death, which may involve a post-mortem examination and/or an autopsy. 

Funeral arrangements may be delayed until the necessary clearance is obtained from the Coroner. 

When clearance is obtained, you can contact us to start planning a funeral. Your loved ones' body will be released into our care, where they'll stay until the funeral service is held. 

If your loved one dies in a public hospital, the staff will complete most of the paperwork that's needed to issue a Death or other certificates.

You will need to contact our funeral home directly. You can do that here.

Most public hospitals will have a mortuary where your loved one will be cared for until we can transfer them into our care during business hours (on weekdays). 

If your loved one dies in a nursing home or private hospital and you're not with them, the staff will contact you once their death has been confirmed. 

It's common for many nursing homes or private hospitals to notify a funeral home (like Brember Family Funerals) in advance and contact them on your behalf in the event of a death. In circumstances like this, the home or hospital will arrange the transfer of your loved one into our care. 

In some cases, a doctor may not be able to issue a medical certificate of the cause of death, and they will refer the death to the coroner.

Determining the cause of death is absolutely vital, and you can't object to a death being referred to the coroner.

However, if you have religious or other strong objections to a post-mortem, you should notify the coroner.

There may be a number of reasons for referring a death to the coroner, including:

• Death other than by natural causes, including violence, accidental or unusual causes
• Death whilst under anaesthetic (or within 24 hours of the administration of an anaesthetics)
• Unexpected death
• Death of a person in an institution, a prison or police custody, drug or alcohol rehabilitation centre
• When the cause of death is unknown, or when the deceased was diagnosed with dementia

Once the Coroner has enough results/records, they will release your loved one to Brember Family Funerals.

Usually, the Executor named in your loved one's Will, family members or friends will arrange a funeral with a funeral director. 

Where a deceased person has no next of kin or close relationships, the funeral will be arranged by a public trustee. 

A funeral director is trained and experienced and can help you and your family from the moment death occurs to well after the funeral service has been held. 

You and your family make all the choices when arranging a funeral. It's our role as funeral directors to show you different options, but ultimately, you make all the decisions.

It's a celebration of your loved one's life, and we are on hand to help you create a memorable funeral where you say goodbye in your own special way. 

You can choose to have an all female funeral if you'd prefer, and our team at Brember are here to help you every step of the way. We work closely with you to guide you through the arrangement process, helping you create a funeral service that's personal and meaningful. You can choose a burial or cremation funeral (with your choice of coffins or urns), the funeral location across Melbourne's many churches, chapels and gravesites, and how you'd like the funeral service to run.

We also cater for many different religions, including Catholic funerals, Hindu and Sikh funerals, and Maori, Samoan and Islander funerals. 

Our team of funeral directors at Brember Family Funerals pride ourselves on meeting your needs. We understand each family's needs are different, and we listen to you. From music choices, doves or balloons being released, and flowers to the type of service you'd like (and everything in between), let us know what you'd like, and we'll do our absolute best to help you. 

Death Certificates are issued by the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages in your state.

Brember Family Funerals are responsible for registering the death with this Registry.

Once the death is registered, Births, Deaths and Marriages will provide a formal Death Certificate. You will need this for any legal and estate issues that need to be attended to.

Applications for a copy of a Death Certificate can only be made at the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages and must be accompanied by at least three forms of identification to ensure your privacy and that information is only released to those who are entitled to it.