It's very common for children to have to deal with death, but when someone you know dies when you're an adult, the situation becomes very different. Now you may have to handle funeral arrangements for the person, and there are some issues that you should know about before you start working with the funeral home.

Preliminary Death Certificates

One of the nice things about funeral homes today is that the morticians are often so well acquainted with local hospitals that the transfer of information regarding the body and death is fairly seamless. The home and the hospital can work together to have the body transported to the funeral home, and you won't have to really get involved in the nitty-gritty there.

But what many people don't realize is that the hospital can't send the final death certificate to the funeral home. Because the hospital may need to perform an autopsy and also get approvals from different hospital and state officials, all the funeral home can get for you is a preliminary copy, which is unofficial.

You can use the preliminary copy to help prove to companies that a death has occurred, but you can't use it to close accounts -- most places will need to wait on that until you have the final certificate. But the funeral home can help you keep track of the official certificate's progress.

No Gold Teeth

Contrary to popular belief, a funeral home director and other employees can't pull out gold teeth from the deceased. Only dentists can do that, and funeral homes can arrange for a dentist to work on the deceased before burial or cremation. But don't expect to get gold teeth simply handed to you just because you asked about them. You will need to wait so that the home can handle the situation properly, according to local laws.

Post-Planning Costs

Estate planning and prepaying for funeral expenses have become a lot more popular as people try to lock in costs instead of sticking a huge bill to their relatives' wallets. However, certain costs can't be paid in advance, such as officiant fees. Be prepared to pay at least a few hundred dollars more when you finalize funeral arrangments.

Funeral home employees can guide you through the process of clearing up the deceased's estate, as well as help you wade through all the choices you'll have for the funeral service. It may be easy to become overwhelmed, but the expert assistance from the funeral home will make the process go more smoothly.

Contact a company like Ryan-Parke Funeral Home for more information and assistance.