I have spent my life listening to reports about failed funeral plans. The Legacy scenario in Hull is just the latest. Why do people still take them out? Time after time people pay into a plan for their funeral only to find the money disappears. Okay, these are not vast sums but they do hit people who do not have a lot of money. That is because these are the people who worry about their funeral. They think that if they pay now it protects those left behind from a big bill. Clearly, that is caring and considerate but not if the scheme collapses. Nor, as oftens happens, that the scheme does not pay all the bills, just some of them. The reality is that funeral bills are not necessarily expensive, that is if you keep control of the funeral arrangements.

Disruptors

The funeral market has seen some dramatic changes in recent years. The biggest of these in the rise in Direct Cremation. You see adverts for this service on television, which in itself is a big change. The funeral industry has always maintained restrictive practices, not least that the actual price of a funeral should not be advertised. Yet, here we have new operators putting price first, right in your face. These are typical disruptors, firms recognising anti-competitive practice and trying to do something about it. We don’t have reliable figures but it is suggested that 20% of cremations now choose Direct Cremation. That is a remarkable change for an industry that hates change. Consequently, you would be stupid to buy a funeral plan for many thousands of pounds when a new firm might do it for £1000.

Funeral Plans

It is not quite so simple! Many people in the business don’t like this form of cremation, where the body is cremated but with no service. It does though remove much of the palaver and that reduces the costs. You can then have the cremated remains returned to you, and hold a funeral service over those. That could be in a pub, village hall or even at home. The professions who worry about our mental health don’t seem keen, sensing that breaking with the ‘normal’ funeral practice, might stop us grieving appropriately. That’s all well and good if you can afford it; many cannot. Cremation, by the way is a filthy process. Whatever, do not take out a Funeral Plan!