Florida Statute 497.152
“Disciplinary grounds”
What it means
Section 497.152 lists conduct that is grounds for denial of any application, imposition of discipline, or other enforcement action against a licensee or other person under Florida's funeral and cemetery law (chapter 497). For this purpose the requirements of the chapter include the rules adopted under it.
The grounds are grouped into 15 subsections: general provisions; criminal activity; discipline by other authorities; obligations to regulators; scope of practice and unlicensed practice; educational requirements; relations with other licensees; transport, custody, treatment or disinterment of remains; sales practices; specific misrepresentations; specific sales practices; disclosure requirements; contract obligations; complaints and claims; and financial matters.
Examples: a false or misleading statement of the legal requirement for particular merchandise or services (subsection (10)(a)); a false claim that embalming, a casket or an outer burial container closure prevents or substantially delays decomposition ((10)(f)); requiring a casket for cremation or claiming one is required ((11)(e)); taking possession of a body or embalming without permission from a legally authorized person ((8)(c)-(d)); and paying or receiving kickbacks ((15)(c)).
- A false or misleading statement of the legal requirement for any particular burial or funeral merchandise or services is a ground (§ 497.152(10)(a)).
- A false claim that embalming, a gasketed or ungasketed casket, or an outer burial container closure prevents or substantially delays decomposition is a ground (§ 497.152(10)(f)).
- Requiring a casket for cremation, or claiming directly or by implication that one is required, is a ground (§ 497.152(11)(e)).
- Taking possession of a body without permission from a legally authorized person is a ground; oral permission must be followed by written permission within a reasonable time set by rule (§ 497.152(8)(c)).
- Failing to furnish a purchaser a written agreement listing items, services, prices, the licensee's details, signatures and the date is a ground (§ 497.152(11)(a)).
- Grounds apply to applications as well as licensees, and a rule adopted under the chapter counts as a requirement of the chapter (§ 497.152, introductory paragraph).
Text of the statute (2026)
This section sets forth conduct that is prohibited and that shall constitute grounds for denial of any application, imposition of discipline, or other enforcement action against the licensee or other person committing such conduct. For purposes of this section, the requirements of this chapter include the requirements of rules adopted under authority of this chapter. No subsection heading in this section shall be interpreted as limiting the applicability of any paragraph within the subsection.
(8) TRANSPORT, CUSTODY, TREATMENT, OR DISINTERMENT OF HUMAN REMAINS.— (a) Violation of any state law or rule or any municipal or county ordinance or regulation affecting the handling, custody, care, or transportation of dead human bodies. (b) Refusing to surrender promptly the custody of a dead human body upon the express order of the legally authorized person to such person’s custody; however, this provision shall be subject to any state or local laws or rules governing custody or transportation of dead human bodies. (c) Taking possession of a dead human body without first having obtained written or oral permission from a legally authorized person. If oral permission is granted, the licensee shall obtain written permission within a reasonable time as established by rule. (d) Embalming human remains without first having obtained written or oral permission from a legally authorized person; however, washing and other public health procedures, such as closing of the orifices by placing cotton soaked in a disinfectant in such orifices until authorization to embalm is received, shall not be precluded. If oral permission is granted, the licensee shall obtain written permission within a reasonable time as established by board rule. (e) Failing to obtain written authorization from a legally authorized person before entombment, interment, disinterment, disentombment, or disinurnment of the remains of any human being.
(a) Making any false or misleading statement of the legal requirement as to the necessity of any particular burial or funeral merchandise or services.
(f) Making any false or misleading statement or claim that natural decomposition or decay of human remains can be prevented or substantially delayed by embalming, use of a gasketed or ungasketed casket, or use of an adhesive or nonadhesive closure on an outer burial container. (g) Making any false or misleading statement, oral or written, directly or indirectly, regarding any law or rule pertaining to the preparation for disposition, transportation for disposition, or disposition of dead human bodies. (h) Making any false or misleading statements of the legal requirement as to the conditions under which preservation of a dead human body is required or as to the necessity of a casket or outer burial container.
(a) Failing to furnish, for retention, to each purchaser of burial rights, burial or funeral merchandise, or burial or funeral services a written agreement, the form of which has been previously approved if and as required by this chapter, that lists in detail the items and services purchased together with the prices for the items and services purchased; the name, address, and telephone number of the licensee; the signatures of the customer and the licensee or her or his representative; and the date signed.
(e) Requiring that a casket be purchased for cremation or claiming directly or by implication that a casket is required for cremation.
(g) Assessing fees and costs that have not been disclosed to the customer in connection with any transaction regulated by this chapter.
(c) Paying to or receiving from any organization, agency, or person, either directly or indirectly, any commission, bonus, kickback, or rebate in any form whatsoever for any business regulated under this chapter, whether such payments are made or received by the licensee, or her or his agent, assistant, or employee; however, this provision shall not prohibit the payment of commissions by a funeral director, funeral establishment, cemetery, or monument establishment to its preneed agents licensed pursuant to this chapter or to licensees under this chapter.
Excerpts are the subsections the summary relies on. Read the full official text of § 497.152.
History. s. 22, ch. 2004-301; s. 90, ch. 2005-2; s. 13, ch. 2005-155; s. 9, ch. 2010-125; s. 4, ch. 2016-172.
How it applies
The section states grounds for denial, discipline or enforcement; it does not state a remedy for customers. A funeral or burial contract and price list can be compared against subsections (11) and (12): the written agreement, a price list showing the range of retail prices, casket prices clearly marked, and disclosure of fees. Funeral and burial expenses are also a category of claim against an estate under § 733.702(1), so a personal representative reviewing a bill may check it against these requirements.
Questions people ask
Sources
- Fla. Stat. § 497.152 (“grounds for denial of any application, imposition of discipline, or other enforcement action against the licensee or other person committing such conduct.”)
- Fla. Stat. § 497.005 (“Legally authorized person” is defined in subsection (43).)
- Fla. Stat. § 733.702 (Claims for funeral or burial expenses must be filed in the probate proceeding within the claim period.)
Last checked: October 17, 2026
Published by the Probate.Help editorial team.How these pages are written and checked.