Paying for funeral

The executor can ask the bank to release the monies to pay the funeral bill. If the bank would require probate (usually depends on the amounts in the accounts individual banks have their own rules on the amount) before full monies are released from the account then you can still ask for them to settle the bill. As other posters said this is one of the reasons funds can be released before probate (if probate is needed) other reasons include paying IHT bill before probate. If there is an executor banks will prefer for them to apply for the funds as sometimes they can only take instruction from executors rather than family of the deceased as well.

When my parents died - 2 years apart, the executors (who were a legal firm acting on behalf of a High Street Bank ) told me that we had to pay for the wake but they'd settle the funeral bill. We didn't want to bother DM about the cost of the wake after DFs funeral so the 3 siblings just split the bill between us. Same when we had DMs wake. Ultimately we were reimbursed as we were beneficiaries of the will.

In Scotland an Executor applies for Confirmation from the Sheriff Court for the area where the deceased last resided

Sorry the estate I was dealing with was insolvent. Deceased had about 20k in the bank but lots of debt. I was told that reasonable funeral expense was coffin/ cremation / service. No flowers/?wake / headstone.

I am pretty sure the executor ( your sister) can use the money from your mum’s account to pay the funeral costs, it comes out of the estate.

I think all this would need to be arranged by your sister who is executor of the will. She needs to be granted probate in order to have authority to make payments from your mum’s bank, and take control of her assets to settle expenses etc.

Please share this with your sister.

https://www.gov.uk/applying-for-probate

Once probate has been granted this should also allow your sister to tie up any loose ends with regard to the estate.

Btw what else can be paid from the deceased's bank account before the probate is through

I paid my father's inheritance tax bill from his (Natwest) account, before probate was awarded.

https://www.gov.uk/paying-inheritance-tax/deceaseds-bank-account

Exactly @Stomacharmeleon !

It's like buying flowers for someone's birthday then expecting them to reimburse you! 🫤

I see @Tarmaced point tbh. The funeral is a necessity but surely the flowers are that persons tribute to the person they love? Or want to buy flowers for? It seems a bit cheeky to then charge the deceased.

@Prawnofthedead Who said anything about expecting someone else to pay for my funeral?! 🤔

The only thing I would expect anyone else to pay for, is the flowers from THEM!

Apart from that I have no objections to my money funding my funeral. 😒

You'll probably just have a funeral without flowers them. I would take that as you saying you didn't want them.

Why should someone else pay for your funeral if you have the money for it and are dead and therefore don't need it for anything else? You can hardly leave all your money to the local dog's home and expect a living relative to pay for your funeral with money they could use for living.

The Bank will pay the final bill from the Funeral Directors direct to them,not sure about Flowers or the wake,call into a branch with DC and ID.
When I arranged a funeral last year I had to pay a deposit of 2K so had to use my personal credit card ,reclaiming from the Estate at a later date.

As

Wills generally contain an instruction to Executors to settle "funeral costs" from the deceased estate and I'd expect a Will would specifically exclude flowers or other costs if the deceased felt so strongly

If the deceased has debts then their estate will be used before distributing to any beneficiaries.
The cost of a funeral is the ultimate death-related debt, so it is completely appropriate for the money to be used to pay.

Well I'll have to put a clause in my Will that they buy their own flowers then, before my estate is distributed to the Dog's home. 😆

Funeral related expenses and probate fees are the only things than can be paid from deceased bank accounts before closure.
I work for Lloyds and probate only needed for balances £50k and above otherwise just death cert and ID needed .

It’s not the beneficiaries but that doesn’t matter. They will use the deceaseds account to pay for their funeral and anything left will go to the local dogs home.

I hear what you're all saying but still don't agree.
What if the estate hasn't been left to the family but the local dog's home?

At the point of arranging the funeral, the estate hasn't even been distributed, so the money isn't the beneficiaries' at that time.

Btw what else can be paid from the deceased's bank account before the probate is through

When my DP passed away 8 years ago, their bank released all their money to me (will executor) without probate as the amount was less than £10k (a lot less).
Things may have changed since then.

The flowers are labelled as coming from family - where do you think the deceased's bank accounts contents end up.
Btw what else can be paid from the deceased's bank account before the probate is through?

Flowers on top of the coffin are often part of the Funeral Directors package. That's all we have had at recent funerals at deceased request. It effectively just reduces the estate so whoever is inheriting effectively pays the bill from money they haven't yet received and may not for some time.

What difference does it make, the money usually goes to the family

No, they're not but it seems wrong that the payment comes from their bank account.
The flowers are usually from The Family aren't they?

Well they aren't going to spend it anywhere else are they.