Ottawa cemetery calls for assistance as rising number of bodies go unclaimed in Ontario

A rising number of people are passing away with no one to claim their remains. CTV’s Austin Lee reports on the challenges for funeral homes and cemeteries.

The number of deceased people whose remains go unclaimed in Ontario is surging.

The latest data from the Office of the Chief Coroner in Ontario shows the total has set a record, jumping from 438 in 2019 to 1,710 in 2025.

Toronto saw the largest total by far with 1,138 bodies going unclaimed in 2025, while Ottawa reported 122 unclaimed bodies.

It’s a trend Scott Miller, funeral director with Cole Funeral Services & Highland Park Cemetery, is seeing firsthand.

“There’s probably somewhere between 900 to a thousand unclaimed remains here at the cemetery,” he said.

“About five years ago, we would handle somewhere around 60 unclaimed burials a year and in the last two years it’s been well over 100.”

A person’s remains are deemed ‘unclaimed’ when no one comes forward to claim the body.

At that point, the Office of the Chief Coroner steps in to ensure the body is laid to rest at a cemetery.

“Around 30 per cent of unclaimed cases that we have are when we cannot find next of kin. We do use the police to help us find next of kin, we look at a variety of sources to try to find them, but sometimes there aren’t any,” said Regional Supervising Coroner for the Eastern Region, Dr. Louise McNaughton-Filion.

“Then you’ve got the other 70 per cent, and of those, I would say a good number are related to the cost of funeral services.”

Dr. McNaughton-Filion adds, family dynamics are some of the other factors that can leave a person’s body to go unclaimed.

When a body goes unclaimed, municipalities step in to cover the costs associated with laying that person to rest.

However, Miller says the money provided by the City of Ottawa fails to cover the costs in their entirety, leaving the funeral home to pick up a portion of the bill.

“They allow for $1,300 to cover the cost of the grave space and the opening and closing of the grave which in no way covers it in today’s costs,” he said.

“We do it at a loss, but we do it as a part of, basically our community service.”

Miller says, once you factor in staffing costs, machinery to dig the grave space, and covering the cost of the space itself, the true cost is closer to $3,000.

“There is a point in time where we can’t continue to lose money. If it was a break-even situation, fine. But no business can continue to operate and lose money,” said Miller.

“I just wish the government of Ontario itself would look at the act under which these fees are prescribed and maybe it’s time to review that and increase the fees.”

Miller says last year, he informed the city that Highland Park Cemetery could no longer continue taking on the majority of Ottawa unclaimed bodies.

CTV News Ottawa asked the Ministry of the Solicitor General if the province is considering increasing the amount of funding available for unclaimed bodies, but a spokesperson said it’s entirely up to the municipalities to determine the funding model.

“Funding for municipal burials is set by the municipalities themselves, not by the province. Ontario Works (OW) or Ontario Disability Support Programs (ODSP) can also provide funding for disposition of a deceased person,” the spokesperson said in the response.

To help address the issue of the surging number of unclaimed bodies, Dr. McNaughton-Filion says people should be aware that you do not have to be family to claim a person’s remains.

“Friends can claim, we’ve had churches and mosques claim the remains of people, Inner City Health is a great example where they will claim someone that has been homeless and living in the shelter that they know quite well,” she said.

“If somebody is a veteran, the Last Post Fund will claim and help with the interment of a veteran. So, those are just a few examples, but there are people out there who are really trying to respectfully take care of people who have passed away.”

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