FAQ: Common Questions About Advanced Funeral Planning

If you have Preplanned and you move in the future, you take this plan with you. All of your personal information and choices are in your confidential file and that file goes with you to the new area where you are moving. Many folks who have also prepaid and guaranteed their costs are concerned that the funds are held at the funeral home. That is not true. The funds are held under the family’s name and are held in a third party trust or insurance company. The only time that they are released is when the death occurs and the survivors designate which funeral home gets the funds.

You certainly can do that. Many folks want to save on their own or use their existing insurance policies to pay for their funerals. Here are some things to consider:

If you saved the money yourself, and you ever needed nursing home care or you suffered a long illness, those funds could possibly be depleted very quickly.

Was the insurance policy meant to pay for your funeral, or was it meant to be used by your family to cover on-going living and/or educational expenses? Because funeral costs nearly double every 8-10 years due to inflation, many insurance policy proceeds can be used-up. Also keep in mind that some policy benefits are large when you are young, but when you hit a certain age, they decrease considerably, or convert to something more affordable. Those proceeds could also realistically be held up in Probate when the death occurs and not readily accessible to your survivors.

We know that some families may not be using our services when the need arises. We also know that not all funeral homes can and do have preplanning programs in place such as ours. One of the benefits of preplanning with us is the fact that you can take advantage of the many options that we offer, and it is all transferable to anywhere. The main reason our program is in place is to help families get the preplanning process started. We feel that it is one of the most important things that you can do, and because there are so many options available to families today, we feel it would be an injustice to not let you know the benefits of those options.

Without question, shopping around has always been a good practice. It is wise to meet the ones who may be handling one of the most important days of your family’s life. Do not choose on price alone though. There can be major differences between staff and facilities when choosing a funeral home. Take note of the attentiveness, the care and compassion and the surroundings when making such an important decision.

Great question. Should that particular casket not be available anymore, you would get one of the same if not greater value in materials. In addition, we use exclusive merchandise manufacturers who have been making many of the same products for many years. Chances are that the same casket would be available many years down the road.

Because funerals are all unique and not everyone deals with grief in the same way, there is no telling how any one particular person will handle the situation. Preplanning allows a family to discuss these important matters together, and when they are better prepared to do so. This way, there are no unanswered questions at the time of need.

That is natural for children to say. What some are really saying is that they do not want to talk about losing you someday. More times than not, survivors have told us that they wished they had taken care of things ahead of time and those who had said what a relief it was that everything was done. In addition, survivors will many times be left with a funeral bill that can be financially strapping, only adding to their emotional burdens as well.

Wills are an excellent start. They are often the first step in Advanced Planning. Many times, though, wills are not read until after the funeral and that is no time to find answers. If you have already begun a will, you may want to record that information with a funeral home, so that the family will not have to do it at such a stressful time. In addition, most wills do not specify what type of casket, vault or urn. Choosing those items at a time of need can be the most emotionally and financially difficult thing to do.

All of the difficult questions that you are answering and choices that you are making ahead of time can be changed at any point. One of the great things about Advanced Planning is the fact that it is flexible. We all know that situations arise, and what is a good choice for you today may not be in the future.