A doctor will need to sight the body and complete a ‘Medical Certificate of Causes of Death’. Your Funeral Director can advise and assist at this time to make the situation easier to understand. Simply call one of the InvoCare New Zealand Ltd Funeral Directors closest to you and they will arrange to come and see you. If a doctor is not available to complete the Medical Certificate then the Coroner may need to become involved.

Your Funeral Director will also be able to arrange to transfer the deceased throughout New Zealand or internationally, as required.

The deceased may have already chosen whether they wish to be buried or cremated, otherwise it is usually the family’s decision.

Burial involves purchasing a plot, which includes a maintenance fee, paying an interment fee to cover the cost of preparing the grave, and buying a memorial or headstone. Burials are usually limited by law to official cemeteries and Maori burial grounds.

Cremation provides more flexibility when choosing a final resting place. Ashes can be buried in a cemetery or placed in a special ashes memorial area, scattered in a garden, at sea, or in a favourite place.

After cremation, the ashes are placed in a simple utility urn which can later be transferred into a personalised memorial urn. These simple urns are ideal for transporting your loved one internationally if required.

Sometimes embalming is needed to ensure sanitation and preservation in the lead up to the funeral, particularly if time is needed for overseas family and friends to travel to New Zealand. Our experienced, qualified staff carry out the embalming process and the body is treated with the utmost respect and dignity at all times.

Our Funeral Directors can make all the arrangements for the service and ensure it flows smoothly. You should choose a ceremony that suits you and your family, and we can assist in discussing all the available choices. Your Funeral Director will meet with clergy and celebrants, doctors and hospitals, coroners and other officials and also crematoriums and cemetery authorities as required. We can also take care of and help you design a ceremony that is reflective of your cultural heritage and sensitivities such as language specialists, translators and the like.

We can help you choose a lasting personal memorial for your loved one and we have a large range of monuments, headstones and plaques using the highest quality granite and bronze, as well as other materials as required. We can also assist in preparing a unique monument to honour your loved one.