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Hello all forum members.
I didn´t post this over the festive period, so as not to take the shine off everyone´s Christmas and New Year, but now I feel the need to share some information.
A friend of mine, Rob ( Robin ) died at 3pm Christmas Day. He was 6 months younger than me ( 50 years old ) and was here to look after his Mum who has had a stroke and now bed bound due to a hip replacement.
He died of a perforated ulcer, ( he told us a couple of days before he thought it was bad flu )
Why am I sharing this? I think it is important to all ex-pats to check the rules and regs in the country they live in. Rob passed away with about €400 to his name, the cost of cremation in Spain is €2,600 and there was no money to pay for it. I personally stumped up the rest of the money to see Rob " laid to rest ", as Mum had nothing and no family coming forward to help.
What I´m trying to advise everyone is to be prepared for the worst.
In Spain, upon death, they also freeze the bank accounts, so in the death of a partner, the other may not be able to access funds to pay for a " funeral " or even live, until the authorities have sorted things out.
I advise all to ensure they have a " funeral plan " in place ( and stash some cash in the house ) so if it happens there is something to live on. Also, in Spain, the longer " on ice " the more the costs rack up. Leaving a will is also very important as in Spain they have different rules regarding " rights " of partners and siblings.
Not sure about other counties, but I hope some of you will advise to help educate us all.
I would also like to advise ( and thank ) the fact that the regulars at " my office " the Bar Pirata in Rojales have been very generous. There have been collections and a New Years raffle to raise money to reimburse me for some of the expense, I am also aware other fund raising activities are being planned. I have already received over € 830 of the money I put up.
There are still good folks on the planet!
Sorry if this is a little disjointed, never done this before.
I didn´t post this over the festive period, so as not to take the shine off everyone´s Christmas and New Year, but now I feel the need to share some information.
A friend of mine, Rob ( Robin ) died at 3pm Christmas Day. He was 6 months younger than me ( 50 years old ) and was here to look after his Mum who has had a stroke and now bed bound due to a hip replacement.
He died of a perforated ulcer, ( he told us a couple of days before he thought it was bad flu )
Why am I sharing this? I think it is important to all ex-pats to check the rules and regs in the country they live in. Rob passed away with about €400 to his name, the cost of cremation in Spain is €2,600 and there was no money to pay for it. I personally stumped up the rest of the money to see Rob " laid to rest ", as Mum had nothing and no family coming forward to help.
What I´m trying to advise everyone is to be prepared for the worst.
In Spain, upon death, they also freeze the bank accounts, so in the death of a partner, the other may not be able to access funds to pay for a " funeral " or even live, until the authorities have sorted things out.
I advise all to ensure they have a " funeral plan " in place ( and stash some cash in the house ) so if it happens there is something to live on. Also, in Spain, the longer " on ice " the more the costs rack up. Leaving a will is also very important as in Spain they have different rules regarding " rights " of partners and siblings.
Not sure about other counties, but I hope some of you will advise to help educate us all.
I would also like to advise ( and thank ) the fact that the regulars at " my office " the Bar Pirata in Rojales have been very generous. There have been collections and a New Years raffle to raise money to reimburse me for some of the expense, I am also aware other fund raising activities are being planned. I have already received over € 830 of the money I put up.
There are still good folks on the planet!
Sorry if this is a little disjointed, never done this before.
