Go Fund Me

[letsgoooo]

AIBU to question why so many people set up Gofund me pages when someone dies?

I get it they died overseas with no insurance or if the family are broke and can't afford a funeral but what's with the raising tens of thousands for no hardship reasons?

Is this a peculiar trend?

It’s just cost us £6000 to bury FIL. I’d imagine if you can’t get your hands on that kind of money it would be awful 🤷🏼‍♀️

There should be some sort of fund from the state.

There is if the family doesn’t have the money. It just won’t be a big funeral.

that 270 million spent on Rwanda would be a nice start.

There is helo available.

https://www.gov.uk/funeral-payments/eligibility#:~:text=You%20can%20get%20a%20Funeral,your%20relationship%20with%20the%20deceased

@Overthebow there is a fund, but it doesn't cover even half the cost here, and as i learned from a friend who lost both parents within 6 months it also wont pay out twice within 6 months... so now shes having to still make payments 2 years later and isnt allowed to access the ashes to scatter them until fully paid

If they genuinely need a go fund me for a funeral im all for it

In an ideal world the government would give everyone as part of NI contributions a payment equivalent to a direct cremation so those fortunate enough to be able to expand on the costs can those that can't aren't forced to beg or borrow

My son died in April, he was 13 and had a short illness with cancer.

Lots of people asked how they could help us so my sister set up a Just Giving account and I was blown away by how much money it raised. The money covered his funeral and then we were able to donate money to the charities in my son's memory. I still have some left and will use it towards a friendship bench for his memorial garden at the school.

We could have paid for his funeral ourselves, children's funerals are paid for for by the government, apart from extras like flowers and video recordings. but we wouldn't have been able to donate large amounts to charity. I think people feel happy that they could donate and feel like they have done something for our son.

I haven't heard of any criticism for doing this and it saddens me to think that people would.

Edited as cross posted with @Downtoyou
Im so sorry for your loss.

I'm very sorry for your loss.

I think it's been the norm to make charitable donations when someone dies for years. It used to say in newspaper announcements something like "family flowers only, donations in leui of flowers to x charity".

Most of the time when people set up fundraising pages it seems to be for charities, unless like you said someone has died abroad or there are extenuating circumstances, so this just seems a more modern way of doing it.

maybe we should make the bereaved take the body home with them, so they can deal with it.

https://www.coop.co.uk/funeralcare/funeral-costs/government-support

Bereavement Support Payment
Help is available in England, Wales and Scotland if your husband, wife or civil partner died on or after 6 April 2017. You can claim this payment if at the time of death:

• you are under state pension age
• were married to or in a civil partnership with the person who has died
• the person who has died paid income tax for 6 months between 1975 and the date of death
• the person died as a result of an accident at work or a disease caused by work

The payment available is £2,500 and is tax free. A further 18 monthly payments of £100 are also made. If you have children under 18 and receive child benefit this amount increases to £3,500 and the 18 monthly payments increase to £350

It depends on the circumstances, really. I don’t think it’s just about funeral expenses - sometimes a death in a family where money is tight and the dead person was the main/only breadwinner leaves the surviving partner with a dire financial situation overnight. Some money to tide them over can be a godsend, because trying to apply for benefits or negotiate with a landlord or whatever while you’re devastated by grief just makes the worst time in your life even worse.

I'm so deeply sorry for your loss. This is a beautiful example of how Go Fund Me should be used xxxxx

If someone dies early there's savings on health/pension etc.
We don't have the choice how a body is handled after death, it's governed by law and isn't cheap. I've always thought that if we make people follow the rules set, then the wavering of the cists for use of the cremation equipment etc should happen.

I sympathise but disagree. It should be used for people who can't afford a funeral. They said they could afford the funeral themselves and the government would have paid anyway so am guessing the charities weren't first and it was a far more lavish funeral then it would have been otherwise.

It's greed. Nothing more, nothing less.
No insurance? You fault. Too tight/ lazy to get any, so suck it up when things go wrong.
A simple funeral can be bought through various payment plans. But those with the least means often want the blingy horse-drawn carriage malarkey.
Cut your cloth accordingly, don't beg from others

It doesn't need to cost so much

Oh right, so tax payers have to fund the funeral of your family
That is the most bonkers thing i have heard in aeons

???? Another bonkers post

I would have thought people felt they had to donate so as not to cause you offence.

A friend of mine lost her son & when people asked what they could do she said to give your DC a hug & do something fun in his memory whilst making memories of your own. I thought that was so lovely & brave of her - it would have been easy to ask for cash for a bench/flower pot/balloon release etc

There Is you can apply for a grant of the deceased had no funds to bury themselves.

What do yoi think people did before this go fund me begging ?