Eric at Neptune Society made the tough time after our beloved mother Ingrid's passing just a little bit easier. He gave us the reassurance and attention we so needed and was always easy to reach when we had questions. Thank you Eric for being there for Mom and our family. Ralf Braese read more

I found Aaron to be a very helpful and conscientious person to deal with. Every aspect of my brother's life was covered and all in all it was a completely efficient transitions. Thanks, Dianne read more

Many years ago, my mother and I chose to prepay for a cremation for her so making crucial decisions would not interrupt my grief. When she recently passed, I called the Neptune Society in Santa Barbara to help with the cremation and all of the logistics thereafter. I spoke to a wonderful gentleman, Aaron Stewart, and he was so helpful and kind that I did not hesitate to proceed with them handling all of my mother's arrangements. Every detail was handled with dignity, respect, and utmost care. I would thoroughly trust Aaron, Jeff, and all of the professional folks at Neptune Society of Santa Barbara with my future needs and highly recommend them to all friends and family. read more

The men that arrived to take custody of my husband's body, were professional and efficient. The follow up from the Santa Barbara office proved both informative and helpful. I would certainly recommend Neptune Society as a means of handling a difficult situation in a considerate and efficient manner. read more

As you know it is very hard to deal of a loved one dying. We had to deal with my father-in- law passing away in a different state. An employee Aaron answered all my questions and informed me that I would need certificates to put the remains at a cemetery in CA. He was so helpful and kind I will definitely come back to this business. read more

@NeptuneSociety - My father passed 9/23/19, OVER A MONTH AGO! He STILL has not been cremated! You have had all the docs and paperwork you require for weeks AND payment! Your Santa Barbara branch is a complete failure & have done NOTHING but pass the blame on to the Los Osos Valley Mortuary. Josh and Brent are useless! My Mom is in tears and traumatized over this! You've done NOTHING but give her the runaround and make this time MORE DIFFICULT! Do something! This is going on every social media and public forum, review platform I can find for you! DON'T EVER USE THIS COMPANY! https://www.neptunesociety.com/ https://www.neptunesociety.com/loca.../santa-barbara-cremation #neptunesociety 4173 State St, Santa Barbara, CA 93110 read more

Aaron sold me three policies one for my mother, husband, and for me. He was able to get me 0% interest on all three policies. He was informative, professional, and very kind. Thereafter I recommended him to my family & friends. I highly recommend him to anyone who's interested in buying a cremation. read more

I highly recommend Neptune Society. We purchased our plan in 2013 and I am so thankful that we did. Aaron Stewart, from Santa Barbara, made the experience dealing with my husbands death so much easier. At a time when there is a great deal of emotion and uncertainty involved, he shared with me how the processes worked and made me feel at ease. I am recommending Neptune Society to my friends and relatives. Because we liked to travel, we purchased a plan where we would be taken care of anywhere in the world. The cost for Neptune Society compared to conventional funerals is amazing and because we planned ahead, I wasn't hit with a huge output of money on top of everything else. Thank you Aaron and Santa Barbara Neptune Society for making a difficult time much easier. Renee G. read more

Horrific! My parents had a prepaid plan for each of them completed in the 90s. Dad just passed away before Christmas and 12 days after the fact I have gotten nothing but the runaround from Josh, the burial director. He has sent incomplete paperwork, changed up their guidelines and made unreasonable demands of our family as we attempt to grieve the loss of my father & my mother's husband of 59 years. My mother actually ended up in the hospital due to the stress this employee's complete mismanagement and unprofessional demeanor has created. He was specifically told not once, not twice, but three times to never call my mother- yet they turned right around the next day and did so. She had a literally been home from the hospital for a few hours. Meantime my father's remains are still laying in refrigeration with zero communication from these people. I am very close to bringing legal action for not only contract violation, but harassment and extreme distress brought on by their unprofessional behavior. Do not, at all costs, do business with the Neptune Society. This has been nothing but an absolutely horrific experience and something one certainly does not want to have to go through after having just suffered the loss of a loved one. What a terrible, terrible experience! UPDATE: 1.11.20 - The "Manager" who refused to give me his last name, but identified himself as "Brent" called to tell me the crematorium my father's remains have been stored at for nearly a month now is "down for maintenance" and the next closest facility in Atascadero has a weight limit of 250 lbs. I was confused, because my 6'2" father, who had been a strapping, 215 lb stud most of his adult life had dwindled to 124 lb. walking skeleton when I took him to his last oncologist appt. 3.5 weeks before he passed. I was literally picking him up and carrying him to the bathroom and in for his showers he was so skinny. I'm a 5'6 1/2" female - how on earth could my dad be over the weight limit??? He explained my father had a medical devise - yes...he had a pacemaker - which was replaced in August and weighs 28 GRAMS. Still thoroughly confused, this man proceeded to explain to me like I was some sort of idiot if I wanted to pay to take my father to another facility, I was welcome to do so. Again, I explained there was NO WAY he weighed even half of what they were claiming. I begged him to have my father's remains reweighed, but he refused. He finally said he'd check to see what our options were, but I could tell by the conversation he was trying to get out of providing the services my folks paid for over TWENTY YEARS AGO. He promised to call me back with an update tomorrow (1.11.20). 1.11.20 - "Brent" did not call as promised, so I attempted to call the VP's of their parent company's Customer Service ad HR divisions. I got dumped into voicemail after explaining the alarming situation. I then proceeded to contact the State of California Attorney General's office to file a complaint, but no one was available. I left a message, but was blown away to discover while on hold this article, dated a mere two weeks before my dad died online: https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-becerra-files-unlawful-business-practices-action-against At 1:40 p.m. Shawn Aylesworth called and identified himself as the Regional Service Manager for the Neptune Society. He advised "Brent" had been terminated today and he was just beginning to research what was going on with my father's remains. I advised I had contacted the State's Attorney General to file a complaint and everything from this point on must be handled professionally and in a timely manner. He agreed. He stated "I'm absolutely appalled...I'm so sorry about ALL of this. If I were in your shoes I'd feel the same way and have reacted and contacted the folks you have in the same manner. This is our failure." He promised to call me back with an update by next Monday, 1.13.20 by 4:00 p.m. I had also reached out to the District Attorney's office of San Luis Obispo County and left a message relating my experience and asking them if they could help just prior to the call from Mr. Aylesworth. I was shocked to receive a personal phone call from San Luis Obispo Assistant District Attorney Eric Dovrath on a Friday night at 6:10 p.m. He had extended a very sincere condolence and told me he'd do everything possible to assist. We have agreed to allow TNS to follow up by the agreed upon time. If not, I will call him back Monday. I will also be making separate arrangements at additional cost to have my father's remains respectfully and professionally created with a reputable funeral home if they don't get this taken care of once and for all Monday. A lawsuit WILL follow if that happens. read more

I am adding my complaint to the many others about Neptune Society Santa Barbara. A very close friend who trusted me to handle her affairs passed away on December 1st, 2019. She had a prepaid plan in place from 1996. I met with Darrell from Neptune to finalize the details 2 days later and felt very pleased with his assistance. Now, over a month has passed and I still have not received her remains or her death certificate! I've made many calls to the business and tried to be understanding. Daryl led me to believe that the entire process would be complete within 2 weeks, but each time, Darrel would apologize and nothing would be done. Today, now over a month since my friend's passing, Darrel called and reluctantly shared that she STILL had not been cremated, and said the problem was because the crematorium didn't have the death certificate! More excuses followed as to why they didn't have the document, but end result is my friend has been in refrigerated storage for a month and nobody but me gives a damn! I would never recommend this business to handle a loved one's cremation. read more

when was the representative that I spoke with. I called for some information, and she was very kind and considerate and very helpful. She answered all of my questions, and did so in a very kind manner that made what could've been a very difficult conversation. Much easier than I expected. I would recommend Neptune just based on that one interaction with Lynn. read more

These folks handled my parents' deaths very promptly & efficiently some years back, and I subsequently contracted with them. Staff has responded well in same manner to recent requests for adjustments and forms. Am well satisfied with the investment. read more

Great service for our family in our time of need. Jerry was responsive and the office staff was pleasant. Cost was surprising reasonable. Best of all, I was able to do everything without having to go into their office. read more

Omg! How can I put it in words. 2 days before my mom passed I signed up with Neptune society. I am so blessed that I did. It was like angels came to me & said we'll take care of everything for you. When your mind can't comprehend what has happened , the most important wish my mom wanted I was able to rely on the most wonderful Organization to take care of it.. The staff Mariano Munoz & Eric Black are very compassionate at your time of need. Thank you both for showing LOVE to my mom. read more

Neptune society staff we're compassionate, caring & very helpful in helping when my mother passed away.

The initial service was good but when I needed corrected death certificate because of name misspelling on first one, they ghosted me.

Jerry Moses made the customer connection. His service was exceptional. He went above and beyond to guide us through the process. The Adams Family read more

If I could, I would rate them a negative 5. I paid in for 2 years and had to cancel because someone gifted me a burial plot. They refuse to give me any money back and instead charged me $1500 for some stupid box that I would have returned. RUN, don't walk away from them. read more

Elizabeth was very helpful and kind during a stressful time. I appreciated her compassion and guidance through the process. I recommend this service highly. read more

Terrible. I'm still flabbergasted at the way I was treated for simply seeking information regarding locating my loved one and making arrangements for settling up the account in order to proceed with cremation. "We put family first" is nothing more than blowing sunshine. The gentleman (and I use the term loosely) I spoke with was more interested in arguing with me about the reason for my call and letting me know that they were "too busy" to have to deal with me rather than just providing me with the information I was seeking. When called out on how rudely I was being treated, instead of apologizing I audibly heard him say "oh God" under his breath while he continued to question why I had the audacity to call his location. They had enough to deal with, after all! I cannot believe that anybody could be that cold hearted and downright rude to somebody who just lost a loved one trying to make arrangements. To you, sir, I apologize for inconveniencing you with my inquiry. To Neptune Society, I think a little sensitivity training is in order. Do better. read more

I had to work with this office this summer. I was pleased with the way the gentleman handled everything and the kind and professional way I was treated by management. Thank you for your thorough explanation of the laws and regulations surrounding the situation. You'd be very know until you have to use their services... read more

My husband and I had a great experience with the Neptune Society in Santa Barbara. We spoke over the phone with Stuart who was immensely helpful, knowledgeable, and personable. We highly recommend the Neptune Society for your end of life needs. read more

I am going to go ahead and add my voice to the growing concern and discontent with the Santa Barbara office's practices. I could go into minute detail about all the ways this location dropped the ball while handling my father's pre-paid cremation (purchased in 1997), but at this point they are under investigation because of the complaint I filed with the California Bureau of Cemeteries and Funerals. Ghosting on a family and refusing to return phone calls or emails may not rise to the level of illegal behavior, but it is shockingly bad customer service, especially for this industry. And being treated with contempt each time you call and leave yet another message asking for a call back is shameful. This location left me in a tough situation, needing to return to my home four hours away, out of FMLA leave after caring for my father during his final weeks, and still waiting for paperwork that was promised days before. And then when they did send the paperwork, it was incorrect! My stepmom is an 82 year old stroke survivor and needed my help to execute nine pages of forms, and collect, scan and return the rest of the required documentation via email. Finally, another branch office got involved, even though I have no idea how they got my name or phone number, and interceded on my behalf with the Santa Barbara office. Even after submitting my paperwork it took another week for someone to email me back just to confirm receipt and let me know everything was in order. Unfortunately, it's likely that no one will read this review until after their loved one has died and they find themselves in the same situation I, and others here, have been in. I was surprised to learn that the nearest office to my father's home was two hours away, so I can't imagine anyone checking out reviews for their "local" office, as Neptune Society is nationally known. If you find yourself here, I hope this serves as proof that you are not crazy, or unreasonable for simply wanting to fulfill a loved one's final wishes and I urge you to deal with a reputable local mortuary for cremation. read more

After my multi-faceted web blast, I was contacted on Facebook and directly by the Regional Manager. He accepted responsibility for the many errors his company and employees made. There is no undoing the damage so we came to the only other resolution we could...financial. My goal was never money, but when there are no other methods of resolution...it is what it. The experience as a whole was terrible, but they took FULL responsibility for their mistakes. My hope is they ARE making the changes needed so that in the future, families in mourning won't have to go through what I did. I do appreciate them accepting responsibility and making the best amends possible. read more

Inconsistent service by location: Night and day the different experience we had when we used a different Neptune Society location when my dad died 20 years ago (good) and this Neptune Society when my mom died a couple months ago (bad). Multiple calls for satisfaction: Notice how the other reviewers needed to contact NS numerous times. In hard times surrounding death you would think the "Arrangement Counselor" (John Tays) would have a soft touch. Email replies from him felt curt and uncaring my me. Jacked up prices: Neptune Society sub-contracts for everything. They use a local funeral home and other local providers, and you pay Neptune Society handling fees. Save your money and work with the local providers yourself and avoid the Neptune Society mark up and headache. read more

My dad had a prepaid plan, so when we called the Neptune Society, they were in Cambria within two hours two retrieve him from the house. The two gentlemen were very respectful of my father's remains, and mindful of our state-of-mind. So, that part was great. However, we never got a definite answer as to when his ashes would be returned; 10 days later we had no ashes for his service. Other family members have used other services, and had the ashes returned literally within days. Disappointing, but I can't fault them for their on-site behavior, it was perfect. read more

They sell these pre-paid packages to our elderly loved ones, but neglect to tell them their going to lay in the morgue for God knows how long. Going into week 5 waiting for my mom to be cremated.. I was patient for the "15 business days" , but the only response I get from John Tays about it is " I haven't been given a cremation date yet".. There is no reason that a cremation should take this long once doctor/ health department have signed off in it. And honestly , in to point that I'm going to start contacting every news outlet on the central coast and get an investigative story going. These prepaid packages purchased by our parents to help relieve some of the stress on us after they pass, only makes it worse!! You cant plan anything, all you think about is how your parent is laying in the morgue for 5 weeks!!!! 0 stars, avoid if possible! read more

I have never been treated worse by a business. They charged me twice over 5000 dollars then took weeks to correct their problem. The salesman is rude and employees inept I was not called or emailed about any of this until corporate headquarters got involved. Please do not use this service in any form read more

THE NEPTUNE SOCIETY Santa Barbara is making a very difficult time-MORE DIFFICULT:( I pre-paid a plan per my Mother's wishes-NOW sadly-her body is lying in their cold storage-because they say the paperwork isn't in order & it may take TWO weeks to cremate & scatter her ashes at sea! TWO weeks? When my beloved pets have passed-I have been shown more consideration & timely concern than NEPTUNE SOCIETY Santa Barbara is demonstrating-This is my Mom! I'm devastated at their inhumane betrayal of her trust. read more

Never know what you will get? My in laws prepaid. When father in law passed 3 yrs ago really good communication and service. I would not recommend them again because 3 weeks ago my mother in law passed. The man and woman who picked her up were great. That is were service, communication and care stopped. Two weeks we get call ashes are ready and we will get a call. 6 days no call. We were told the man was sick. Called Neptune and the man said we would have to pick up the ashes in Santa Barbara or they would mail them. When my father in law died they brought us the ashes and the man was so kind. Not this time. They should be trying to make this easier not harder and not communication and then give no service like we had in past. read more

Worst spammers in the world! Three times I have called and asked to be removed from their mailings. Yet they keep sending me their unwanted spam. read more

The gang at the Neptune Society in SB helped my family tremendously through our tough time. Even with our million phone calls and emails weeks after they were still answering and taking the time to make sure we understood. read more

My mom prepaid for her funeral services, 20 yrs ago. There was a little assuming on my part and a little misc communications on their part. When said and done, their manager Charles Martin made good on the issues. Charles explained some of the problems that I experienced and now understand, plus he refunded me some of the things that were paid for and not given. The only advice I would suggest is that you get a boat on your own to scatter the ashes as they double the price. I now have a good feeling on Neptune Society. read more

Run.....away from the Neptune Society! What a complete nightmare! My dear father died in February and it took the Neptune Society in Santa Barbara 6 weeks and 2 days before they cremated him! They had promised that all matters including his cremation would be completed within 2 to 3 weeks. In the end it took over twice that amount of time. Every week I had to call two to three times for updates on my dad's cremation status and also to see when we would receive the death certificates which my mom really needed. On March 13th Joshua called me to tell me the certificates were ready. I pleaded with him to mail them immediately....which he agreed to do. By March 21st we still hadn't received them. When my sister called to see if they had been mailed she was told......"Opppps..they are sitting right here on the desk." We finally received them the following day. After week four passed and my father had still not been cremated...I was beginning to wonder if they had sold his body to science. At this point I actually wanted to view his body but this would have entailed paying Neptune Society more money ($375) for a 'Witness Cremation'. These six weeks and two days caused our family so much stress and grief! Although my parents had a prepaid plan....I refuse to deal with the Neptune Society again when my mom dies. It was a horrible experience during a very sad time in our lives. I would rather pay double the amount of money and work with a professional mortuary who will handle matters in a timely manner. I would have rated them with zero stars if possible...but I will give one star only due to the fact that I have no choice and that Joshua (after being called by me) drove my dad's ashes to my mom's house. I'm just surprised that the Neptune Society didn't send him along with a bill for us to pay for the delivery. This will NEVER happen again in my family! Don't let it happen to yours. read more

Darrell Collard and his team at Neptune Society made a very difficult time as easy as possible. The whole concept of Neptune Society is to feel like you have taken as much burden from your family as possible, and Darrell ensured that the concept was a reality for our family. I would recommend Neptune Society to everyone, and especially the respectful and genuine Darrell Collard. Thank you so much! read more

My father decided on the Neptune Society because he wanted something simple and easy, after a long and heartbreaking ordeal with my mother's early-onset Alzheimer's. At first I felt comforted that everything would be taken care of when the time came, but then the time did come, and I discovered how unprofessional this service is. After my mother died, we were left waiting for hours for the Neptune Society to collect her body--and we were not treated with respect on the phone when we called repeatedly to find out why they were so delayed. My mother was clearly beginning to decompose by the time they arrived, at nearly midnight. Then, the next day, reviewing the forms the Neptune Society had filled out for my father, I discovered several errors--not least of which was that my mother's age was off by over thirty years. Overall, I will just say that I would never recommend the Neptune Society, and I found that their incompetence made a very difficult and painful loss even harder to bear. To be honest, I don't have any confidence at all that the ashes we'll get back from them will actually be my mother's. read more

Liars. Don't trust anything they say. I had this guy "Jimmy" calling me multiple times even though I asked him not to and said I was not interested in his service. He called me a liar and said he never spoke to me before. Well, if that's the case the Santa Barbara office has several "Jimmys" that work there. Do your homework on this one. There are at least two websites out there with multiple postings complaining about them. The complaints are all related to Lying and Fraud. and after he flat out lied to me. I decided to add my complaint to the list. Google "Neptune Society and Fraud Alert". read more

My dad passed away in 2009, he was cremated by the Neptune society, and my Mom saved his ashes. She passed away in 2014, and we wanted to inter them together at a national cemetery. We had the burial permit for my Mom, but not for my Dad. We asked Neptune about it, but were not comfortable with the answers. After at least 4 emails to Mr. John Tays expressing the need for something called a burial permit for both our parents, and asking specifically about one for our father, Mr. Tays replied "Permit is done _ Burial at Riverside National Cemetery..........ALL DONE AND READY". We showed up at the cemetary on a 100 degree afternoon, and were told that they could not accept the paperwork we had, because there was no burial permit for my father. My wife and I flew back to Illinois, and my brother took care of the interment the next day. I have not seen my parents' final resting place. On the positive side, a lady named Lela at the Santa Barbara Neptune Society was extremely helpful getting my brother the paperwork he needed the next day. Thanks, Lela! read more

Also, with our "pre-paid" plan we were supposed to get 25 thank you for your condolence cards, but zip, nada, no cards!!! Also, with the pre-paid plan your supposed to get one death certificate. Never received and it is 4/3/17 and my mom passed 1/5/17!!! I would advise anybody to go somewhere else they are so disorganized. read more

Charles went out of the way to make the process easier. He hand delivered documents and the ashes. I have used the Neptune Society before with good results and I highly recommend them. read more