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How to Buy Funeral Insurance

Burial Insurance Coverage Prepays Final Funeral Costs

Apr 21, 2009 Shelley Aylesworth-Spink

Interest in burial insurance, funeral or death insurance, is rising. Buyers should beware when funeral planning includes such prepaid final expense insurance.

The combination of rising funeral costs and the desire to plan the exact casket, urn, flowers and burial service means that people are increasingly more knowledgeable about funeral planning.

Funeral insurance is becoming an important way for people, particularly seniors, to prepay their final arrangements sometimes long before the need arises. With this type of insurance coverage, people plan the products and services they would like for their funeral and pay for them in advance.

Funeral Costs Prepaid With Good Funeral Insurance Policies

However, buyers should beware; policyholders across North America have faced a host of funeral insurance scams from unscrupulous dealers who prey on the elderly and charge premiums beyond the actual costs of the planned funeral.

In fact, final expense insurance policies are supplementary policies above and beyond the basic life insurance policies. These policies have small coverage limits of about $10,000 and are specifically designed to pay for funeral costs.

Prepaid Funeral Costs Possible with Final Expense Insurance

A prepaid funeral allows people to take advantage of today’s funeral prices and not face the escalation in such costs years down the road. Funeral insurance policies are sometimes purchased from a person’s insurance agent or a funeral director and most policies are capped at a specific dollar amount, sometimes as high as $25,000.

The services and products bought in advance include:

A casket or urn
Cremation
Embalming
Burial vault or grave liner
Grave marker
Hearse and other funeral vehicles
Flowers
Digging and filling the grave
Plot

Before buying funeral insurance, watch for the following items:

Each state has different laws on funeral insurance
Insist on an annual statement about the policy
The policy should be very specific about the exact grave site, size and style of grave marker and burial container
Any estate planning or will should have the same information as the funeral insurance policy
Contact the Better Business Bureau to get details about the insurance agent and funeral director before buying a funeral insurance policy
Insist on a price guarantee as part of the prepayment and get these locked in prices in writing
Ensure that the funeral arrangement can be moved to any other funeral home in case a move occurs
Know exactly what would happen if the policy is cancelled

Funeral prearrangements have been around for years. However, preplanned and prepaid funerals available through funeral insurance are making not only more financial sense but good common sense for many people as part of making their final plans.

The copyright of the article How to Buy Funeral Insurance in Insurance is owned by Shelley Aylesworth-Spink. Permission to republish How to Buy Funeral Insurance in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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