Funeral plans

[unicornsarereal72]

I was wondering if anyone had any advice regarding funeral plans. I'm in my 50's. And although I have life insurance to cover the mortgage. I have no funds put aside for funeral expenses. I'm also a lone parent Although I've told the children I don't want a fuss. A direct cremation is what I prefer. Whatever they decide I don't want them to be worried about the cost. Any suggestion that are affordable would be appreciated.

Will there be enough £ in your estate to cover a direct cremation? This would usually be paid by the estate once available, rather than having to be paid quickly by those you leave behind.

@VictoryOrDeath thank you that. Yes the life insurance would pay off the remaining mortgage. My concerns are if they are young adults still at home they may want to stay in the house. Or the other side of things when the mortgage is (finally) paid off. One of them might want the house. And feel the right thing to do is to have a small policy to cover the costs

I suppose you could have a small policy with a reputable company, or you could have a pot of savings that are specifically earmarked for your funeral, and let the executors of your estate know.

I've had to organise a few relatives' funerals, and the biggest relief of all would be knowing what the deceased wanted with regard to a funeral / cremation / a burial etc. I've had a good experience of direct cremation then a gathering for family and friends with a celebrant to say a few words.

Yes that is what I'd like. My father's funeral was £8k. He planned and paid for it. And it was what he wanted. I feel it is a waste of money.

Yes, I also want a direct cremation and some kind of family do afterwards. I want any money that I have to help my family afterwards, rather than being spent on something that I'm not particularly bothered about. Have you spoken to your family about your wishes? Some people haven't really heard of direct cremations.

I wouldn't, loads have gone bust!

Are there any places near you that do direct cremations? Is it worth seeing if they have pre-payment plans?
If they do it very likely they will also go through your wishes re flowers/donations/music etc and you can pass on that you have pre-arranged all this with your relatives.

As a daughter who has lost both parents although my parents didn't pre-pay for their funerals (there was money in the estate so no issues regarding that) it was a massive comfort and relief to know what sort if send off both of them wanted (polar opposites!)

I would say also that although the one of my parents may not have wanted a big 'do ' - for the family & friends being able to get together & celebrate and grief together was a massively important thing. Additionally as a family we wanted to host something and feed/water guests appropriately especially for those who travelled far to attend.

It might seem like a waste of money (like weddings which in theory don't need to cost more than the £500 license fee or whatever it is) but these events & rituals can hold a lot of importance, they don't have to cost stupid money, but celebrating, marking, and acknowledging a life is important IMO

A lot of funeral plan providers now offer a direct cremation option as they're becoming more popular. For example, the Co-op offers one for around £1600 (slightly more for non-members). You can shop around and funeral directors have to put pricing of their funerals and pre-paid plans on their websites these days.

I'd speak to your children first to get their thoughts. Some people like the formality of saying a proper goodbye to their loved one.

An alternative to a funeral plan is an over50s life insurance plan. These usually pay out very quickly. A good one is Sun Life. The funeral director can get payment very quickly direct from the provider, so that your loved ones don't have to find the cash.

One thing to bear in mind, if you buy a pre-paid funeral plan for a direct cremation, at the time of need your plan will cover the complete cost and will not go up, even if the funeral director's fees have increased in between taking the plan and time of death. If you rely on an Only50s policy, when you die you'll pay the price of a funeral at that time, so you can save more money with a funeral plan (assuming you go on to live a good long life OP).

Thank you all for the suggestions. Yes I've spoken to the children about my wishes. So they are aware they can do as they want I'd rather no fuss but if they want to do something I want the funds to be there for them.

I have taken out a direct cremation plan with coop and am paying it at about 100 pounds a month for a year. I feel pleased it's done and my kids can just ring a number. I think if they decide they want more they can upgrade.

I'd avoid a pre-pay funeral plan incase they go bust as some have done then what a waste of money. Either start a small savings account, or expect it to come from your estate.

My dad had a plan which I think was through the post office and used at coop and honestly it was such a good thing when he went unexpectedly. I can't remember the exact amount but we ended up not using all of it and we got the remaining balance back once coop had claimed their bit.

These are now protected since scandals a few years ago.

Oh I didn't know. Still if the moving was in a savings account it would accure interest?

This is true however I figured that if I am lucky enough to live another ten or twenty years I will have saved money on rising funeral costs.

i understand they are cheaper if you buy now
and they are protected by financial services authority

I pay £28.46 a month to the Co-Op. If I last another 15 years (optimistic) I'll only have paid about £5k. Even better, they pay out from the first year of instalments.

They're protected by FSCS.

My mum has arranged and paid for her direct cremation, think she said it was about £1700.I have the paperwork and details of how to sort it when the time comes.

DH and I are considering a Funeral Plan too, probably a direct cremation, mainly so that it is easier for DC when the time comes.

I’d open a bank account pot and label it funeral costs, put a small amount in monthly for 6 years and then reduce payments in but top up with about £10 per month to cover inflation. It’ll go a long way to covering a basic funeral without cars or flowers at a crematorium- then they have the choice