Sunday, March 13, 2011

BEWARE OF FUNERAL RIP-OFFS. (LETS JUST CALL IT LIKE IT IS, SHALL WE?)

I found this article in a newspaper back east, I think you will appreciate it, I know I do because it says what I’ve been saying all along. If you are reading this, you are making your local overpriced funeral director VERY uncomfortable, and that is EXACTLY what I am intending to do.


Death is big business. How big, you ask? The National Funeral Directors Association says the average funeral costs $7,323 ($3,400 average @ Avenidas Funeral Chapel, 2 day burial service) — and that doesn't include the cost of a cemetery plot, a gravestone and cemetery burial services.


In all, dealing with the death of a loved one can cost more than $10,000, making it one of the most expensive purchases most families will make. So why do we do so little research on the topic?

"People are in denial about death right up until the bitter end," said Ed Markin, who runs the Funeral Help Program in Virginia Beach, Va. "You delay talking about it at your own fiscal peril is what it all boils down to."


Markin said funeral costs vary widely, controlled almost entirely by the amount of research you do — and when you do it. He said you can save almost 50 percent by shopping around and getting written quotes before you need them.


He suggests talking to your loved ones ahead of time about what they actually want in their funeral: the type of casket, the tone of memorial service, and whether they want to be cremated or buried.

Markin said he thinks funeral home directors sometimes guilt loved ones into paying for more expensive caskets and services by implying that anything less would be disrespectful.


To protect consumers, the Federal Trade Commission established the Funeral Rule, which requires funeral directors to give you itemized prices in person or, if you ask for them, over the phone. When you visit a funeral home shopping for a casket, the director must show you a list of all the caskets his or her company sells, along with the prices and descriptions, before showing you any models.


The Funeral Rule also states you have the right to buy individual goods and services. In other words, you don't have to buy a package deal with commonly selected goods and services. Funeral homes must allow you to buy services a la carte, so don't be pressured into buying more than you want.


To find the full list of provisions in the Funeral Rule, visit ftc.gov.

Joshua Slocum, executive director of Funeral Consumers Alliance, said funeral directors sometimes try to "upsell" consumers to pricier, flashier casket models.

"Anytime (a funeral director) talks to you about a 'traditional funeral,' make a mental strike through those words and replace them with 'my highest-priced funeral,'" Slocum said.

READ THE NEXT PARAGRAPH VERY CAREFULLY!



After a loved one has just died, the funeral director "is in full control of their mental faculties, and you are not," he said.


"THEY ARE NOT CLERGY. IT'S IN THEIR ABSOLUTE BEST INTEREST FOR YOU TO SPEND A LOT OF MONEY AT THEIR FUNERAL HOME AND NOT, I REPEAT NOT FOR THEM TO SAVE YOU MONEY. THEY ARE NOT A NON PROFIT ORGANIZATION"


THIS IS A BUISNESS, NOT A WORSHIP FACILITY AND YES, MANY WILL TRY TO GIVE YOU THE IMPRESSION OF "MINISTRIES FIRST" APROACH. IF SO, ASK FOR CREDENTIALS.


Slocum says also to be wary of prepaid funerals. While prepaid plans sound enticing, they often come with strings attached. Funeral homes usually pitch the plans as a way to lock in funerals at today's prices, saving you the cost of inflation. Cashing in the plans, however, can sometimes prove difficult.

If you are considering such a plan, review the contract carefully and understand exactly what you are buying. Ask where your money will be held and who will manage it. Some accounts that hold money from prepaid plans have gone under in recent years, leaving the folks who invested empty-handed. Make sure the contract has a provision that protects you if the firm goes out of business. Also check to see if there are fees to cancel the plan, or what happens if you move.


"Prepaid plans “can be” a terrible idea,".  If you notice "I" said "can be" but it does not necessarily have to be that way. Read the small print, understand what you are signing up for, ask questions and ensure you are getting everything YOU want.


Be weary of funeral home owners who sell funeral policies for their own funeral homes. Consider an independent that promotes or offers many different packages for different funeral facilities.



Consider putting your money in a certificate of deposit, a savings account or a "pay on death" account at your bank. Make a trusted friend or relative the beneficiary, so that when you die, the money is immediately available.


Most important, shop around. Never look at just one funeral home. The more research you do, the better deal you will get.


Why you should know this:

Because the death of a loved one can scramble your common sense, it helps to study before you need the facts.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

THE ALL NEW AND IMPROVED "RENTAL CASKET". DO YOU REALLY CARE?

Son!
Yes Dad!
Son, your becoming of age now and I think it is time that you and I sat down and had a talk, you see there are some things in life that you may not understand or may have been lead to believe and one of those things is what I am about to share with you. It may be a little uncomfortable but I think we can both get thru this.
What is it Pop? I can handle it, go ahead. WAIT! Let me get a little glass of water first. (sip)
Son there are things out there, things that people create to pull the wool over your eyes, things that  appear not quite as they should be, and things created to appear to be taking your welfare into account when  in fact……. It is not so, and one of those things is…, none other than………..
THE RENTAL CASKET!
Oh Pleas Dad, say it isn’t so!
I cant Son, it’s true, it’s out there and it’s waiting for the day that you walk into your friendly neighborhood funeral home.

(notice the sneeky little trap door)

The rental casket was a devious plan that was created so funeral homes can recover some of the monies lost when a family chooses to cremate over the almost outdated (notice I said almost) in ground burial. It is no secret, and yes even society is becoming keenly aware that a vast majority of the funeral homes revenue comes thru the ridicules mark-up of the casket. Well The Funeral industry had to come up with yet another idea to recover those lost charges.
How many times have you heard someone say “Oh, just put me in a box and burn me” well, believe it or not, that is possible, its called direct cremation, we will revisit direct cremation on another day. Direct cremation may be the wish of the deceased but some (not all) funeral providers do hope and prey on your desire to see the deceased one more time or have that final viewing so you can be “convinced” your friends can say goodbye (even though the deceased wanted to be put in that box and… well, you know)
So you agree on a visitation but instead of a simple cremation container or a cloth covered inexpensive cremation container, you are perhaps encouraged to consider “the rental casket” The rental casket DOES appear more traditional, I mean, it DOES look like a casket.  It looks classy and expensive and your friends will think you paid allot of money for it so now,......... you don't appear cheap! (thats is the sales pitch)

That’s just laying the ground work, now the counselor has you hooked, along with that comes the flowers and the cards and the service and so on, and so on, and so on. What started out as a simple little goodbye has turned into a $4,500 service topped off with a $400 Urn because gosh darn it your Pop deserve the best DOESN'T HE?, even though your definition of the best does not have to burst outside of your budget. Or non of this is really what he wanted in the first place!
The rental casket is nothing more than a casket that is built, traditionally out of oak but as of late, the industry is reaching outside of the box (no pun intended) for variety. It has no interior and is created with a trap door at the foot for removing the deceased after viewing to send them off to cremation. Remember that box? You still get it. Other names for it are “The surround” or “the rental”
A funeral home purchases “the rental for about $1,500. They the rent it out to the families for anywhere between $500 to $900. Most of the time it is listed on the general price list. If it is, and it does not read “insert included”,  or if it is listed on a cremation package and does not read “insert included” Then chances are, the insert is NOT included.
This is a rental insert

You need the insert to use the casket so if you pay for one, you will need the other. Expect to pay for the insert as well, between $150 to $250 more. The insert is what the deceased goes to cremation in. The box is removed from the rental after the service and a lid is put on it and the deceased is sent off to cremation. All of the insert, the pillow, the throw and any removable cloth parts that are purchased with each insert.
IT IS ILLEGAL TO RE-USE AN INSERT FOR ANOTHER FAMILIES SERVICE!
 Let me repeat that! It is illegal to re-use an insert for another family. You see, sometimes disreputable or GREEDY funeral homes do re-use them to save a little money or double their income.

IF YOU USE A RENTAL CASKET, and there is nothing at all wrong with using one if that is what you want, ensure it's INSERT is, well…………………………………….NEW!
Look, I have a rental casket at AVENIDAS, I also have other cremation plans that do not offer the rental casket.  I also offer the rental at no cost to the family if need be because they truly cant afford much. This is my option, I am a business owner.
Remember. Two or three services for most funeral homes and the rental is paid off, the rest of the charges are pure profit baby, $600 and up to $800 at a time. 

PSSST! wanna know a secret? Visitations can be made in a simple cardboard box if that’s what you want to use. Very dignified and it falls right in line with the old mans wishes when he says

JUST PUT ME IN A DAMN BOX AND BURN ME!
Lined cremation container for viewing with pillow
Your cost $75.00  

It was your wish Dad, to keep it simple.
Not some funeral homes dream………………….

Buena Suerte my friends!


"My Simple Wish cremation package"
$985.00

Basic service of the funeral director and staff
Removal from the place of death
Embalming, dressing, casketing & cosmetics
Lined cremation box for viewing
2 hour daytime visitation, Monday - Friday
No later than 4PM
Administrative fees
County permits
Transport to the crematory
Cremation process
Plastic cremains container

*other costs may apply