Financial responsibility for funerals of relatives etc.

If a relative you have had no contact with in over 40 years dies and has no money - is anyone in the family responsible for the funeral costs and does your family relationship with them (e.g. brother, niece, parent, child, uncle) make any difference?

What if they go into a care home - are any of the family financially responsible?

This comes about after a conversation I had with someone who hasn't seen her brother in 40 years and I told her she wouldn't be responsible. I thought that there must be many people in a similar situation, be it an aunt or uncle, brother or sister, nephew or niece.

No one person is responsible for another person.
Except your children but only when they are under 18.

I think they'd get a paupers funeral paid for by the local council, who may or may not then try to track down the relatives and try to get them to pay. Apparently there is a huge increase in the number of funerals being paid for by councils these days.

So I was right then - she doesn't legally have to pay if she chooses not to?

Correct..............

I 2nd all of the above

Thanks. It did make me think a bit because lots of people must have distant relatives or relatives they've fallen out with or lost touch with.

You do not have to pay for anyones funeral, you could even refuse to pay for your husband/wife or mum/dad.

There is no financial obligation to anyone.

Actually....
What happens is the costs are borne by the deceased person`s estate.
If there are insufficient funds someone has to apply to the DSS for a Funeral payment which covers the cost of a basic funeral (no cars, minister etc).
On the form is a question about relatives. Part of the question is `why would they not be expected to pay towards the costs of the funeral`.
If the reasons are sufficient, there is no liability. In the case of a brother she hasn`t seen for years there would be no problem. She can however contribute towards flowers etc. and should get in touch with the Funeral Directors if she wishes to do so.

When my friend and neighbour died suddenly last year, the police asked everyone he knew to try and find any living relatives. I was told that if not, he would have a council funeral. We knew he had an estranged wife he hadn't seen for about 25 years and relatives somewhere in Ireland but that was all we knew.

Whether they did trace anyone or not, none of his friends were told about any funeral, so we didn't have a chance to say goodbye. That was pretty hard because at the time, it was suspected murder.