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Avoid overspending on funeral costs

By Times Staff Writer
Published July 10, 2005

Many people make decisions about funeral goods and services when they are grieving and under time constraints. Doing at least some advance planning can help you make informed, thoughtful decisions. Here are some tips to help:

1. LEARN YOUR LOVED ONES' PREFERENCES. More and more people genuinely want simpler arrangements to be made for them, perhaps involving cremation or a basic graveside ceremony without a formal viewing.

2. DON'T FEEL FUNNY ABOUT SHOPPING AROUND. Call or visit several funeral homes to compare prices, or ask a friend to do this for you. The federal Funeral Rule requires homes to give prices by phone and provide general price lists for review.

3. ASK ABOUT OWNERSHIP. Always ask whether the funeral home is part of a national chain, a local chain or independent. Local chains tend to offer the best deals, according to a Consumer Reports price survey.

4. COMPARE PRICES FOR THE ENTIRE PACKAGE. Every funeral home has separate price lists for general services, caskets and outer burial containers. You must use all three lists to arrive at the total funeral cost and make price comparisons between funeral providers.

5. BUY YOUR OWN CASKET. The price of a casket can equal one-third to one-half of the total cost of a traditional funeral. A funeral home cannot charge you a fee if you provide your own casket from an outside source. A quick search on the Internet reveals that several companies charge hundreds if not thousands of dollars less for the same caskets sold by many funeral homes, and most deliver the next day.

6. REFLECT ON ALL YOUR OPTIONS. You would not need to purchase a casket if you donated a body to science or chose immediate burial or direct cremation. A graveside or memorial service could be arranged for a later date.

7. REMEMBER THE OUTER BURIAL CONTAINER. Such containers - sometimes called "grave liners" or "vaults" - surround the casket in the grave and prevent the ground from sinking over time. Again, the funeral home is not your only source for such containers. Several businesses sell them, so consult the Internet or a phone book.

8. PREPLAN, BUT DON'T PREPAY. Many funeral homes are pushing hard to sell prepaid plans that would have you pay for the full price of your own funeral in advance. Despite your good intentions, surviving family members could be hit with unexpected expenses that were supposed to be covered, or charged hefty fees if the funeral must take place at a different location.

9. SET ASIDE YOUR OWN MONEY. All the interest earned on money in a prepaid plan goes to the funeral home, but the beneficiary must pay the taxes. You could accrue interest yourself by putting money for funeral costs in a certificate of deposit and filling out simple paperwork with instructions to liquidate the money upon death.

10. ADVICE IS AVAILABLE IF YOU NEED IT. Organizations such as the Funeral Consumers Alliance (www.funerals.org or toll-free 1-800-765-0107 and the Funeral Service Consumer Assistance Program (www.nfda.org/page.php?pID 709 or toll-free 1-800-228-6332) are there to help.

Sources: AARP (www.aarp.org) Federal Trade Commission (www.ftc.gov) Consumer Reports (www.consumerreports.org) "The American Way of Death Revisited," by Jessica Mitford.

[Last modified July 7, 2005, 18:05:03]