Getting Funeral Insurance: What You Need To Know – Part 1
It is an unpleasant but inevitable fact that everyone dies eventually when the time comes. Though the thought of dying greatly petrifies most of us, this is an ugly but inescapable truth. However terrifying the idea of death may be, we must always be ready and accept this inevitable fact.
Departing from this life for an eternal repose is so poignant for both you and your family but it pains the more to those who will be left, your family. Indeed, the coping process alone is not easy plus the fact that your family needs to provide you a decent wake and a final resting place. However, if you want to ease your family’s burden and ensure that you will be provided with a decent wake and final resting place, getting funeral insurance is the best you can do.
What Is Funeral Insurance?
Funeral insurance plans, also known as burial, final expense or pre-need insurance, refers to a group of insurance products that are designed to cover or provide for your funeral expenses by paying in advance. For just a nominal amount every month, you can be certain that your funeral is arranged and the cost of organizing your funeral is taken care of and paid for in advance, so the burden isn’t left to your family or beneficiaries.
A funeral insurance cover can take care of all the fine details of your funeral like the casket, the flowers, and the service. Every aspect in between is covered by funeral insurance.
Funeral insurance is different from that of life insurance in the sense that the latter takes care of the people who will be left behind after your death while the former, that is a funeral cover, will take care of your funeral.
What are the Three Types of Coverage for Funeral Expenses?
You can purchase funeral insurance plans from an insurance broker or funeral director. They will write the burial policy which covers specific services and/or products you might feel are vital. This may include covering the casket, funeral service, visitations or viewing, hearse, digging and filling the grave, the actual cemetery plot, burial vault or grave liner, minister, headstone, and flowers. However, there is no standard type of funeral insurance policy. Moreover, the amount of funeral insurance coverage varies and depends on the amount you want the final expenses to cost. This ranges from traditional whole life insurance to policies or agreements that only cover funeral expenses, specifically:
Life insurance with family member as beneficiary. There are life insurances that cover funeral expenses. However, you can also purchase life insurance with the main purpose of using the proceeds to cover your funeral expenses. You can name a family member as your beneficiary, and discuss your funeral plan with them.
Life insurance with funeral director named as beneficiary. Some funeral homes may provide a small whole life policy with a contract for funeral services, with the requirement that the funeral director is the beneficiary of the policy as part of their services. In this type of life insurance, you may pay for just a part, or the entire funeral expenses, using the life insurance policy that you have paid for. However, the death benefit goes exclusively to the funeral home, not to your family.
Pre-need contract with funeral home. This type of contract usually includes the burial plot, grave marker, casket or urn, embalming or cremation, flowers and funeral cars. There are some policies that do not specify what the death benefit can be used for. In that case, the beneficiary decides on how the money can be used.
