Does the funeral company have an obligation to provide advice?

Following the death of their mother in France, the V. family called on a funeral business to organize funerals in Portugal. The coffin in Portugal is taken care of by a Portuguese company, paid for by the business of funeral homes. The coffin is placed in a vault-chapel exposed to the open air.

Three years later, the V. family was informed by the cemetery services in Portugal of the degradation of the coffin and the outpouring of bodily fluids on the floor of the funeral chapel. A change of coffin and a new burial are necessary. The family claims the business of funeral homes as compensation for their material and moral damages.

After having been rejected by the court of first instance, the V. family won its case before the Court of Appeal, which held the funeral business contractually liable.

After finding that the coffin was not watertight because of its exposure to the open air, the Court of Appeal considered that the coffin provided was not in conformity with the use for which it was intended. As a professional in the organization of funerals, the business of funeral homes had a duty to provide information and advice, including information on the method of burial envisaged and the suitability of the products offered.

The business of funeral homes is appealing to the Court of Cassation.

According to the referring court, although the trader is required to inform the consumer of the essential characteristics of the goods supplied, he is not obliged to inform his client of the possible inadequacy of the goods for a use which is not that commonly accepted. She claims that the coffin provided complied with French standards and the rules applicable to the international transport of bodies, and that it was for the V family to inform her of the method of burial envisaged, which was not the one commonly accepted (open-air deposit in a vault-chapel).

Does the obligation to advise the professional require verification that the proposed coffin is suitable for the intended conditions of use?

Public Service replies:

The Court of Cassation, in its decision of December 3, 2025, rejects the request of the funeral business.

It first recalls that the professional seller is required, before the sale, an obligation to provide advice requiring him to inquire about the buyer's needs in order to inform him about the suitability of the proposed good for the intended use.

It confirms the reasoning of the Court of Appeal. The latter, after finding that the business of the funeral home did not demonstrate that it had complied with that obligation, inferred from that that it was liable.

The business of the funeral home is thus ordered to compensate the V. family for the damage suffered.