Funeral Director (Aide Memoire)

Prior to the day of travel, we require you to email us the exact weight of the casket (including the deceased) so we can advise the crane operators - this weight will be checked and recorded by the crane operators at the time the casket is transferred to the boat.

It is the Funeral Directors role to obtain a compliant sea coffin and prepare the deceased in accordance with MMO regulations (embalming is prohibited) for burial at sea.

On the appointed day it is the Funeral Director’s role is to deliver the deceased in a compliant MMO specification casket to the Marina crane for transfer to our vessel for the burial at Sea.

Once the Marine Coffin has been certified as compliant* in particularly the weight being confirmed (crane’s load cell will provide a read out), this should match the previously advised weight provided by you as the Funeral
Directors**

We will assume full responsibly for complying with the provisions of the MMO burial at sea licence and the delivery of the deceased final wishes.

*MMO Reserve the right to carry out a full inspection of the coffin (including contents), Licence and vessel before confirming the
execution of the MMO burial at sea Licence can proceed (any additional costs incurred due this inspection failing will be chargeable to
the Funeral Director). ** We reserve the right not to proceed with the burial at sea if the coffin weight is below the minimum MMO
specification – coffins & deceased usually weigh in the region of 300kg.

PREPARING THE DECEASED

In preparing the Deceased for a Sea Burial you/your Funeral Directors must also make sure that the body:
  • isn’t embalmed
  • is lightly dressed in biodegradable material
  • has a durable identification tag with the details of the funeral director

MMO always reserves the right to inspect the body, coffin, licence and the 3 supporting original certificates before the boat puts to sea to carry out the burial at sea.

How to Arrange a Burial at Sea

From being notified of the death (usually from the Funeral Directors) we take full
responsibility for obtaining the MMO licence though our MMO online account.
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Coffin 
Requirements

The coffin and any inner liner must be made of natural, non-toxic materials.They must both be able to withstand any impact and be able to carry the body.
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Delivery to 
Sea

Our support team is here to make sure things runs smoothly, so you can get on with other things. Our aim is to provide the best service we can for all our burials at sea.
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Send us a message

Have a question? We’re here to help. Send us a message and we’ll be in touch. 

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