FAQs - Am I required to Buy a Memorial from the Cemetery?
NO, you are NOT required to purchase memorialization from the cemetery!
We hear more and more often, about situations where the family was told that they must purchase memorial products from the cemetery. This is simply not true. It is actually illegal for any cemetery in Ontario, to refuse to allow the installation of a memorial that has been purchased from a monument company as long as the memorial complies with the cemetery bylaws or regulations. You have an Ontario government legislated right to purchase memorialization products from a monument company of your choice, rather than the cemetery, if you wish to do so.
MONUMENT COMPANIES, their employees and their representatives are full time professionals in the monument & memorialization industry and they are NOT governed by the same legislation that governs the activities of cemeteries and funeral homes.
CEMETERIES, CASKET STORES & FUNERAL HOMES & OTHERS WHO SELL MONUMENTS AS A SIDELINE, MUST HAVE A VALID LICENSE in order to SELL MEMORIALIZATION PRODUCTS. Cemeterians and funeral homes see families immediately after the death, at a time when people are at their most vulnerable, and thus they are in a position of trust which could be easily abused. To address these concerns, the Ontario government introduced legislation that became effective July 1, 2012, which requires extra education and licensing for cemetery and funeral home employees who wish to sell memorialization products. The requirement to be licensed applies ONLY to cemeteries, casket stores and funeral homes or other people or businesses who sell monuments as a sideline.
We hear more and more often, about situations where the family was told that they must purchase memorial products from the cemetery. This is simply not true. It is actually illegal for any cemetery in Ontario, to refuse to allow the installation of a memorial that has been purchased from a monument company as long as the memorial complies with the cemetery bylaws or regulations. You have an Ontario government legislated right to purchase memorialization products from a monument company of your choice, rather than the cemetery, if you wish to do so.
MONUMENT COMPANIES, their employees and their representatives are full time professionals in the monument & memorialization industry and they are NOT governed by the same legislation that governs the activities of cemeteries and funeral homes.
CEMETERIES, CASKET STORES & FUNERAL HOMES & OTHERS WHO SELL MONUMENTS AS A SIDELINE, MUST HAVE A VALID LICENSE in order to SELL MEMORIALIZATION PRODUCTS. Cemeterians and funeral homes see families immediately after the death, at a time when people are at their most vulnerable, and thus they are in a position of trust which could be easily abused. To address these concerns, the Ontario government introduced legislation that became effective July 1, 2012, which requires extra education and licensing for cemetery and funeral home employees who wish to sell memorialization products. The requirement to be licensed applies ONLY to cemeteries, casket stores and funeral homes or other people or businesses who sell monuments as a sideline.