It is the sincere desire of the staff of Mann and Greenwell Funeral Home, Inc. to offer you our help and guidance not only with funeral arrangements themselves, but also on the many details you will be faced with following the funeral services.
Fortunately, you are not involved with these arrangements every day. Therefore, you may need assistance with many details following the funeral. As part of our service to you, we are available to help you any way we can, at no additional cost.
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Insurance and Trust Information
Life Insurance — Individual
We have claimant statements for many different insurance companies available to you in our office. In most cases, we can handle all of the details concerning settlement of your insurance claims, obtaining information and completing claim forms and death certificates.
Funeral Funding Trust
If you have made funeral arrangements prior to the individual’s death with Mann and Greenwell Funeral Home, Inc. either by making a deposit toward funeral services or by paying for the services in full, we will take care of filing for the claim.
If a deposit only was made, then the deposit, plus any interest, will go toward payment of the funeral expenses. If services have been paid in full, no additional monies will be required unless cash advance items cost has increased.
Pre-Need Insurance
This pertains to funeral arrangements funded with burial insurance obtained through Mann and Greenwell Funeral Home, Inc. If the deceased has this type of insurance, there is nothing you will need to do. We will order the death certificate for the insurance company and handle the claim processing for you.
Monuments
Often while making funeral arrangements, we are asked where to go to purchase a monument or grave marker. Who should be called about engraving a headstone with dates and lettering?
Mann and Greenwell Funeral Home is pleased to refer our families to Keith Monument Company, an authorized representative of Rock of Ages Memorials (
www.rockofages.com) Our representative, Roxann King, can assist you with the design and selection of a quality personalized memorial tribute to your loved one.
Roxann King 502-348-5977 or 1-800-573-3539
Veterans Administration Benefits
Louisville regional VA office: 1-800-827-1000
www.va.gov
Members of U.S. armed forces who died on active duty, or veterans who served during wartime or peacetime, and received anything other than a dishonorable discharge, are entitled to numerous benefits from the Veteran’s Administration. Service beginning after September 9, 1980 requires a minimum of 24 months, a hardship discharge, or a service-connected disability.
1. The Veteran’s Administration may pay up to $350 for burial and funeral expenses if the vet:
a. was entitled at the time of death to pension or compensation, or
b. died while hospitalized or domiciled in a VA facility or other facility at VA expense.
To these veterans, VA also pays a $350 plot allowance (unless buried in a national cemetery).
2. For veterans who die of a service-connected disability, the VA will pay up to $2,000 for burial and funeral expenses, including the cost of transporting the body to the national cemetery nearest their home in which burial space is available.
3. A United States flag to drape the casket will be available upon request. This will be given to the next of kin, close friend or associate of the deceased at the close of the services.
4. A United States grave marker, of bronze or gray granite will be furnished by the VA, upon request. It will be inscribed with the appropriate information. This is available regardless of whether or not they are buried in a national cemetery.
5. The interment of a deceased veteran of wartime or peacetime service whose service terminated other than dishonorably will be authorized in any cemetery in the National Cemetery System in which space is available. Arlington National Cemetery is under the jurisdiction of the DOD, not the Department of Veteran’s Affairs. With the exception of cremated remains, burial is limited to specific categories of military personnel and veterans.
6. Deceased spouses, remarried surviving spouses, minor children and certain adult unmarried dependent children are also eligible.
7. Memorial markers may be filed by the next of kin to commemorate any veteran whose remains were not recovered or identified, were buried at sea or cremated with all ashes scattered, or were donated to science. Memorial markers may be erected in private cemeteries in plots provided by the applicant, or in a memorial section of a national cemetery.
*Claim for any type of burial benefit must be filed within two years of burial or cremation.
Social Security
If the deceased was receiving Social Security benefits, you need to contact the Social Security Office to report the death. If you think you may be eligible for survivor’s benefits, you should also contact them to apply.
How Social Security Helps Families
Social Security survivor’s benefits help ease the financial burden that follows a worker’s death. Almost all children under age 18 will get monthly benefits if a working parent dies. Other family members may be eligible for benefits, too.
Anyone who has worked and paid Social Security (FICA) taxes has been earning Social Security benefits for his or her family. The amount of work needed to pay survivor’s benefits depends on the worker’s age at the time of death. It may be as little as one and one half years for a young worker; no one needs more than 10 years.
Who can get survivor’s benefits?
This is a list of family members who usually can get benefits:
• Widows and Widowers age 60 or older
• Widows and widowers at any age if caring for the deceased’s child(ren) who are under age 16 or disabled
• Divorced wives and husbands age 60 or older, if married to the deceased 10 years or more
• Widows, widowers, divorced wives, and divorced husbands age 50 or older, if they are disabled
• Children up to age 18
• Children age 18-19, if they attend elementary school or high school full time
• Children over age 18, if they become disabled before age 22
• The deceased worker’s parents age 62 or older, if they were being supported by the worker.
In addition to the monthly benefits for family members, a one-time payment of $255 can be paid to a spouse who was living with the worker at the time of death. If there is none, it can be paid to a spouse who is eligible for benefits, or a child or children eligible for benefits. This payment cannot be made if there is no eligible spouse or child.
How To Apply For Benefits
You can apply for benefits by telephone, or by going to any Social Security office. You may need some of the documents shown on the list below, but don’t delay your application because you don’t have all the information. If you don’t have a document you need, Social Security can help you get it.
The information you need includes:
• Your Social Security number and the deceased worker’s Social Security number
• A death certificate (generally, the funeral director provides a statement that can be used for this purpose)
• Proof of the deceased worker’s earnings for last year (W-2 forms or self-employment tax return)
• Your birth certificate
• A marriage certificate, if you are applying for benefits as a widow, widower, divorced wife, or divorced husband.
• A divorce decree, if you are applying for benefits as a divorced wife or husband
• Children’s birth certificates and Social Security numbers, if applying for children’s benefits
• Your checking or savings account information, if you want direct deposit of your benefits.
You will need to submit original documents or copies certified by the issuing office. You can mail or bring them to the office. Social Security will make photocopies and return your documents.
Supplemental Security Information
If you are 65 or older, disabled, or blind, ask the Social Security representative about Supplemental Security Income (SSI) checks for people with limited income and resources. If you receive SSI, you may also qualify for Medicaid, food stamps, and other social services.
If the deceased was receiving Social Security benefits, any checks which arrive after death will need to be returned to the Social Security office. If Social Security checks were being directly deposited into a bank account, the bank needs to be notified of the death, too.
For more information, call the social security office in Elizabethtown, KY (270)-769-2410, visit the Social Security Web site or phone toll-free 1-800-772-1213. You can speak to a representative weekdays 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
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