What do you call holding the body while waiting for payment?

The term used to describe holding a body while awaiting payment is generally referred to as "wrongfully withholding." This phrase captures the ethical and legal implications of retaining a deceased individual when their family or estate has not yet fulfilled payment obligations.

In the field of mortuary science, it's critical that funeral service professionals balance the need for practical business decisions with the rights and sensitivities of the deceased's family. Holding a body without proper contractual justification can lead to accusations of unethical practices and could potentially violate local or state laws regarding the treatment of deceased individuals.

While the other terms might seem relevant, they do not encapsulate the specific situation of retaining a body due to payment issues. "Improper retention," for example, lacks the direct reference to payment matters and instead suggests a broader issue of how the body is being kept. "Delayed custody" implies a timing issue rather than a payment-related one, and "unjust confinement" is more commonly associated with civil liberties and confinement in broader legal contexts, rather than specifically within the funeral industry context. Thus, the chosen term clearly describes the scenario at hand.