Real Live Transporter Review
by Mortuary Transport Expert ~ July 22nd, 2008. Filed under: Stay On Your Toes.Here’s a real letter I just received about the experience from using a removal service for both the house call and delivery to the cemetery. This may be preaching to the choir for most who read this, but every removal has to leave a good impression. We mess up accidentally enough times without letting poor service be a habit.
My other concern is the funeral home trying lay blame at the removal service, instead of at their own doorstep. I lost at least one funeral home because of a dunderheaded mistake by a driver who had more experience than me, so it’s not just inexperience that can damage a transport business.
I include my answer to her at the end.
Subject: questions re: transport
Hi. I found your website and wondered if you might be able to help me. I recently had a terrible experience when arranging funeral services for a family friend. I am in Michigan and according to the funeral director, the services for transporting the deceased from the home (in this case) to the funeral home, and from the funeral home to the cemetery, are done by independent contractors (not employees of the funeral home), and they are not licensed. Due to the inexcusable behavior of the transport people, I wondered if there was an organization or licensing agency that I could discuss our concerns with so other families are not subjected to what this family went through.
I would appreciate any information you can provide. Thank you for your time.
(Name withheld for privacy)
Regarding your experience, even though the transportation company may be contracted out, they still represent the funeral home. Therefore, the complaint and the loss of reputation goes to the funeral home. That transportation company is only in business because someone calls them.
My best advice is to not recommend that funeral home or any funeral home that uses them. If the funeral home takes their reputation and your experience as a client seriously, they will extend some kind of apology to you and your family at least, and it wouldn’t hurt for the transport company (if it was a personnel snafu, which I’ve had before too) extend an apology as well. When I’ve had absolutely rotten removals done, I would always comp the service, and use it as a training/learning situation for my employees. I would then personally call the family, explain that I was the company doing the transport, and apologize during that conversation as well.
During a sad time like this, no one needs the bad experience of how their loved one was handled hanging in the memory of the whole grieving process.
When the funeral home put off the bad work as “independent contractors” instead of owning up to it being their decision to use them that was at fault, that was the first red flag I caught. Yes, the transportation company should be held responsible, but by the funeral home, not any government agency. The funeral home is the entity with all the liability, and that “independent contractor” was working for the funeral home at the time, no matter what the business relationship.
There are plenty of reputable funeral homes out there that use a third party service successfully, so I wouldn’t let that put you off. Unfortunately, because there aren’t a lot of laws preventing someone from buying a van and going into the mortuary transport business, the funeral industry sometimes will go with the lowest bidder for as long as they can before it bites them in the keister.
The important thing for a transportation service to realize is, while this is a business, there are real live people involved all around you to whom you must to stay accountable. Tomorrow, your reputation is all you’ll have to stay in business.
