Whether you’re a snowbird going to a warmer climate to escape winter’s weather or you’re traveling on a business trip, it’s wise to prepare for the unexpected. Accidents happen, people fall victim to new or existing medical conditions. Death is always an overwhelming event, especially so when it occurs away from home.

That’s why it is wise to carry a wallet-sized card which list the names of your next-of-kin and the telephone number of your funeral director, and whether any funeral arrangements have been made.

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The following are a few suggestions to help cope with death away from home:

1. Don’t leave the body. Most deaths that occur while traveling are sudden and require an investigation by the local medical examiner’s office and police department. Having a family member available to the authorities at the place of death will expedite the return process. There is plenty of time no need to be rushed.

2. If a person has died and family is not with the deceased, survivors should not travel long distances to the place of death. With today’s technology, there’s a good possibility that if identification is required, survivors can save time and money by staying at home and requesting another means to accomplish the necessary procedures.

3. In most instances call your hometown funeral director to handle all the details at the location where death occurred. Allow him or her to select the means of returning your loved one home. Your family funeral director is familiar with the necessary procedures to ease the process for you.

4. If the death occurs overseas, the United States State Department in Washington, D.C. (202)-647-5225 or the local Embassy can provide emergency assistance for Americans traveling overseas who encounter a tragedy of this nature. Any expense will ultimately be the responsibility of the bereaved family, but because of the State Department’s intervention, there may be no immediate up front expense in most cases.

In most cases, the additional cost to return a loved one home when death occurs in the continental United States can range from $500 to $750 depending on the place of death. International returns can be from $1,500 to $3,500 also depending on location. For more information, you might want to call your family funeral director before leaving home.