Code of Maryland Regulations › Title 09 - MARYLAND DEPARTMENT OF LABOR › Subtitle 34 - OFFICE OF CEMETERY OVERSIGHT › Chapter 09.34.04 - Code of Ethics and Professional Standards › Section 09.34.04.03 - General Professional Practices

Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 14, July 12, 2024
A. A registrant or
				permit holder shall:
(1) Act in a manner that
				respects and protects the dignity of a decedent and the decedent's family or
				pet's owner;
(2) Conduct business
				in a reasonable, usual, and customary manner;
(3) Comply with the State public health laws
				as set forth in Health-General Article, §4-215 and §5-501 et seq.,
				Annotated Code of Maryland;
(4)
				Comply with Commercial Law Article, Titles 12 and 13, Annotated Code of
				Maryland;
(5) Implement and follow
				through on all arrangements agreed upon between a consumer and the cemetery or
				burial goods business;
(6) Provide
				appropriate services for and respect the rights of individuals without regard
				to age, race, creed, national origin, gender, disability, marital status,
				political belief, religious affiliation, social or economic status, or social
				preferences;
(7) Comply with the
				State laws for cremation;
(8) Be
				sensitive and responsive to the bereavement needs of a decedent's family or
				pet's owner;
(9) Complete the
				obligations of a paid-in-full contract within a reasonable time of the need for
				these goods and services;
(10)
				Comply with all laws dealing with the operation of a cemetery or providing
				burial goods;
(11) Be responsible
				for repair or replacement of any memorial damaged or improperly set by the
				registrant or the registrant's or permit holder's employees;
(12) Disclose to a consumer orally and in
				writing at or before the time of a preneed sale all goods and services that are
				reasonably expected to be required at the time of need that are not included in
				the preneed burial contract, including:
(a)
				Interment or entombment fees including opening and closing costs, and any
				additional fees associated with an extra depth interment,
(b) A vault or grave liner or the
				installation of a vault or grave liner, or both,
(c) Removal and replacement of a footing or
				memorial, or both, for the opening and closing of a burial space,
(d) Imposition of additional fees for
				weekend, holiday, or after hours interment, including any rights to a refund or
				reimbursement of the fees for services paid in advance but not utilized, and
				notification that any additional fees imposed for weekend, holiday, or after
				hours interment will be those listed on the current general price list at the
				time of need, and
(e) Any other
				goods or services for which the registrant or permit holder charges a fee
				including but not limited to memorial care fees, vault inspection fees, vault
				installation fees, lay-out fees, temporary marker fees, memorial inscription
				fees, and inspection fees;
(13) Disclose to a consumer orally and in
				writing at or before the time of a sale of a monument, memorial, or other
				permanent product used to identify a human or pet burial space all goods and
				services related to the monument, memorial, or other permanent product that are
				reasonably expected to be required for the full use and care of the product at
				the time of need that are not included in the burial contract, including:
(a) Installation of memorials,
(b) Inspection and lay-out fees charged by
				cemeteries in connection with the installation of foundations, memorials, or
				both,
(c) Removal and resetting
				fees,
(d) Memorial care
				fees,
(e) Date of death
				inscription, and
(f) Any other
				goods, services, or fees directly related to or reasonably expected to be
				required for full use and care of installed memorials;
(14) State to a consumer in clear
				understandable language orally and in writing, at the time of entering into a
				contract, all cancellation and refund rights which may be available to the
				consumer, including rights relating to burial spaces, caskets, and burial goods
				considered delivered;
(15) Disclose
				to a consumer, orally and in writing, the responsibility of the registrant or
				permit holder for the continued care of memorials after purchase;
(16) Disclose to a consumer, orally and in
				writing, at or before the time of an at-need sale that:
(a) Memorials and foundations for memorials
				may be purchased either from the cemetery or an outside burial goods business;
				and
(b) The installation or
				servicing of memorials, including foundations, may be purchased from either the
				cemetery or an outside burial goods business;
(17) Provide to any person who requests
				information, at the office, regarding burial space, burial goods, or burial
				services, the general price list for the person to retain;
(18) Provide accurate information, orally,
				from the general price list to any person who requests information, by
				telephone, regarding specific burial space, burial goods, or burial
				services;
(19) Present to a
				consumer a balanced display of various cost options of burial goods or services
				offered for sale; and
(20) Comply
				with any oral or written disclosure requirements in this chapter by obtaining a
				signed acknowledgment from the consumer.