Who Is Responsible Foe Ex Husbands Funeral?

peachybabe | 14:41 Sat 26th Oct 2013 | Law

15 Answers

My sister divorced her husband 5 yrs ago. Neither her nor their six children have kept in contact with him. He has not remarried. Last night he suffered a major heart attack and died. Two questions ( not from me!). 1. Who is responsible for the cost of his funeral, and 2. Will my sister be entitled to claim any of his pension?

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ummmm

1) Not her and tell her not to start any arrangements.

woofgang

no one is responsible for the cost of anyone's funeral, not even their own, although the estate of the deceased may be if he had any.

peachybabe

Question Author

Thanks both!

ubasses

The cost of his funeral should come from his estate and paid by his executor (administrator if no Will) before any inheritance is paid out.
The pension would be determined by the rules of the pension fund.

knittynora

The pension may also depend on the terms of the divorce.

peachybabe

Question Author

He had a low paid job, and certainly no estate. No will either. I believe that he may be buried/ cremated by the local authority if he had no assets of his own.

Rosetta

A Citizens Advice Bureau may be able to advice re pension entitlement

Did he die in hospital? If so many hospitals have a specific department dealing with funerals for deceased patients who have no relatives, try phoning the hospital for advice. Its worth contacting them anyway as they might already be involved in case a post mortem is needed
The Local Authority has a duty to provide funerals people without funds or relatives so they can also be contacted for advice

FredPuli43

Pension rights fall for consideration with matrimonial property and rights to maintenance on a divorce, though the extent to which they play a part depends on the age and circumstances of the couple. There may have been a final decision on the pension rights then.

Otherwise it depends on what the terms of the pension are. They might provide for money to the surviving spouse even though, at the death she is no longer a spouse, being divorced, and the deceased did not remarry, but that seems a bit unlikely

FredPuli43

And no, the sister is not liable for funeral expenses. They fall on the estate of the deceased, the executors or administrators pay them out of it. Beneficiaries of the will or relatives or friends might volunteer to pay them, but that's a matter for them; it is not an obligation. It sometimes happens that the executors only want to have a standard funeral and somebody says they want a very grand one and will pay for it.

dzug2

Whoever arranges the funeral is responsible for the cost of it

OK they can then reclaim it from the estate, if any, but if the estate can't cover it they are lumbered with the cost