Where to Get Help for A Death in Your Family

Information about bereavement

BC Bereavement Helpline	A non-profit society that facilitates the care and support of the bereaved throughout BC.	Website: www.bcbereavementhelpline.com Phone: 604-738-9950 (Lower Mainland) Phone toll-free: 1-877-779-2223 Box 53530, 984 West Broadway, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1K7
BC Children’s Hospital	Offers support services for parents on the death of a child.	Website: www.bcchildrens.ca Phone: 604-875-2345 (Lower Mainland) Phone toll-free: 1-888-300-3088 Email: FSRC@cw.bc.ca 4480 Oak Street, Vancouver, BC V6H 3N1

Information about burial and cremation

Consumer Protection BC	Responsible for the administration and enforcement of the Consumer Protection Act and the Cremation, Interment and Funeral Services Act.	Website: www.consumerprotectionbc.ca Phone: 604-320-1667 (Lower Mainland) Phone toll-free: 1-888-564-9963 PO Box 9244, Victoria, BC V8W 9J2
Cemetery and Crematorium Association of BC	A non-profit provincial death-care association that provides information for cremation, cemetery and memorialization professionals.	Website: www.ccabc.org Phone: 604-866-7292 (Lower Mainland) Phone toll-free: 1-866-587-3213 Email: info@ccabc.org PO Box 10082, Aldergrove, BC V4W 3Z5
Funeral Service Association of BC	A non-profit association that provides general information about funeral services in BC. The section of their website “When a Death Occurs,” has information about what do first, how to contact the funeral home, and what to expect.	Website: www.bcfunerals.com Phone: 250-592-3213 (Victoria) Phone toll-free: 1-800-665-3899 Email: info@bcfunerals.com 211 – 2187 Oak Bay Avenue Victoria, BC V8R 1G1

Memorial societies

The People’s Memorial Society of BC	A non-profit and locally-operated society that provides pre-arrangement, burial, cremation, memorial, funeral, and transfer services.	505 Stn Main, Vernon BC V1T 9Z9 Outside Lower Mainland – 1.800.661.3358 info@peoplesmemorialsocietybc.com www.peoplesmemorialsocietybc.com
Memorial Society of BC	A non-profit organization that helps to plan funerals that are simple, dignified and affordable.	205 - 640 West Broadway, Vancouver BC V5Z 1G4 Lower Mainland – 604.733.7705 Outside Lower Mainland – 1.888.816.5902 mail@memsoc.org www.memorialsocietybc.org

Information about legal and medical matters

British Columbia Hospice Palliative Care Association	Provides leadership and support for its member organizations and individuals. Its goal is to ensure quality care for British Columbians faced with a life-threatening illness, death, and bereavement.	502 – 1081 Burrard Street, Vancouver, BC V6Z 1Y6 Lower Mainland – 604.806.8821 Outside Lower Mainland – 1.877.422.4722 office@hospicebc.org www.bchpca.org
Vital Statistics Agency	The British Columbia Vital Statistics Agency is responsible for the registration of births, marriages, and deaths in British Columbia. Offices are located in Victoria, Vancouver, and Kelowna.	PO Box 9657 Stn Prov Govt, Victoria, BC V8W 9P3 Lower Mainland – 604.660.2937 Outside Lower Mainland – 1.888.876.1633 www.vs.gov.bc.ca
Coroners Service	The Coroners Service of British Columbia is a division of the Ministry of Public Safety Solicitor General and for the Province of BC. It is responsible for the inquiry/investigation of all unnatural, unexpected, unexplained, or unattended deaths.	Chief Coroner’s Office Metrotower II 800 – 4720 Kingsway, Burnaby, BC V5H 4N2 Lower Mainland – 604.660.7745 Enquiry BC: 1.800.663.7868 BC.CorSer@gov.bc.ca www.pssg.gov.bc.ca/coroners
Public Guardians and Trustee Office	Administers estates of people in BC who die with or without a will when an executor, family member, or other eligible person either does not wish or is unable to carry out the administration of the estate.	700 – 808 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, BC V6C 3L3 Lower Mainland – 604.660.4444 Enquiry BC – 1.800.663.7867 mail@trustee.bc.ca www.trustee.bc.ca
British Columbia Transplant Society	The British Columbia Transplant Society (BCTS) directs, delivers, or contracts for all organ transplant services across BC.	555 West 12th Avenue (West Tower), Vancouver, BC V5Z 3X7 Lower Mainland – 604.877.2240 Outside Lower Mainland – 1.800.663.6189 BCTS_Webmaster@bcts.hnet.bc.ca www.transplant.bc.ca
Will and Estates: Attorney General	The Ministry of Attorney General website has information about Wills and Estates, including the Probate registry.	www.ag.gov.bc.ca/courts/other/wills_estates.htm
Probate Kit, Self-Counsel or Press	Provides step-by-step instructions and includes all the required forms on enclosed CD-ROM. This kit also contains Administration Forms, which you will need if no valid will is available.	www.self-counsel.com You can also find Self-Counsel Press publications for sale in many bookstores and in your local public library.
Lawyer Referral Service	The Service enables members of the public to consult with a lawyer for up to 30 minutes for a fee of $25, plus taxes.	Lower Mainland – 604.687.3221 Outside Lower Mainland – 1.800.663.1919 lawyerreferral@bccba.org
The Society of Notaries Public	A Notary Public can provide assistance with notarizing Death Certificates and providing extensive information about wills and estates. Contact the Society office to obtain the name and telephone number of a Notary Public near you. Ask the Notary Public how much it will cost for the first meeting.	Box 44, 1220 - 625 Howe Street, Vancouver, BC V6C 2T6 Lower Mainland – 604. 681.4516 Outside Lower Mainland – 1.800.663.0343 www.notaries.bc.ca

Information about benefits

Service Canada	On the Service Canada website, the section called “What to Do Following a Death” includes information about benefits available under the Canada pension Plan. Look under “Additional Information for the Canada Pension Plan and Other Death Related Benefits”.	PO Box 1177 Station CSC, Victoria BC V8W 2V2 1.800.O-Canada (1.800.622.6232) Hearing or speech impairment – 1.800.926.9105 www.servicecanada.gc.ca
Ministry of Social Development	When a person dies and there are no resources for funeral expenses, through either the individual’s estate or family, the Ministry of Social Development may help with these costs.	To locate an office near you, call: 1.666.866.0800 www.hsd.gov.bc.ca/publicat/bcea/Funerals.htm
The Crime Victim Assistance Program	Administered by the Victim Service Division of the BC Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General. Immediate family members of an injured or deceased victim may be eligible for financial assistance and benefits including funeral expenses.	PO Box 5550 Station Terminal, Vancouver BC V6B 1H1 Lower Mainland – 604. 660.3888 Outside Lower Mainland – 1.866.660.3888 SGCrimeVictimAssistanceProgram@gov.bc.ca www.pssg.gov.bc.ca/victimservices/financial/index.htm
ICBC	Will provide no-fault accident benefits, including payment for the cost of funeral expenses or $2,500, whichever is less.	Lower Mainland – 604.661.2800 Outside Lower Mainland – 1.800.663.3051 www.icbc.com
The Last Post, Veterans Affairs Canada	Its primary mandate is to deliver the Veterans Affairs Canada Funeral and Burial Program which provides funeral, burial and grave marking benefits for eligible Canadian and Allied Veterans.	203 – 7337, 137th Street,Surrey, BC V3W 1A4 Lower Mainland – 604.572.3242 Outside Lower Mainland – 1.800.268.0248 lpfinfowest@lastpost.ca www.lastpostfund.ca
WorkSafe BC	Dedicated to promoting workplace health and safety for the workers and employers of this province. “For Families: A Guide for Families Coping with a Work-Related Death or Terminal Illness” booklet, is available on their website.	www.worksafebc.com

This information applies to British Columbia, Canada. Last reviewed for legal accuracy by People's Law School, 2012.

A Death in Your Family © People's Law School is, except for the images, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Licence.

Under the Family Law Act, a term that describes the time a person who is not a guardian of a child, including a parent who is not a guardian, has with that child. Under the Divorce Act, a term that describes the time a person who is not a married spouse has with a child. See "guardian" and "parental responsibilities."

In property law, the act of an owner of a thing giving ownership of that thing to another person, usually in exchange for money or other property in the case of a sale, or in exchange for other rights in the case of a family law agreement. See "family law agreements," "ownership" and "sale."

The person responsible for carrying out the instructions in a will and wrapping up a deceased person's estate and debts. The lovely feminine form of the word is "executrix," though the masculine form is commonly applied to executrices and executors both. See "estate," "testator," and "will."

In law, all of the personal property and real property that a person owns or in which they have an interest, usually in connection with the prospect or event of the person's death.

A person who holds property in trust for the benefit of another person. See "trust."

(1) A central office, located in each judicial district, at which the court files for each court proceeding in that district are maintained, and at which legal documents can be filed, searched, and reviewed, or (2) a courthouse.

In law, the directions given by a client to their lawyer about either the conduct of their affairs or a court proceeding.

An agreement to transfer the ownership of property from one person to another in exchange for the reciprocal transfer of something else, usually money. See "agreement."

A person licensed to practice law in a particular jurisdiction by that jurisdiction's law society. See "barrister and solicitor."

In law, a calculation of the allowable legal expenses of a party to a court proceeding, as determined by the Supreme Court Family Rules. The party who is most successful in a court proceeding is usually awarded their "costs" of the proceeding. See "account," "bill of costs," "Certificate of Costs or Expenses" and "lawyer's fees."