The job of the funeral director is to care for and safeguard the body until its final disposition. Funeral directors coordinate every aspect of the funeral, serve as dealers for caskets and containers, arrange for final disposition of the body, provide the funeral facility and complete the necessary paperwork.

You may choose a funeral home based on location, reputation or personal experience. Ask family, friends or co-workers for their recommendations. Clergy may be able to offer some helpful guidance. Naturally, you will want a funeral director with whom you feel comfortable.

In your initial investigation, get a price list. Under federal law (The Funeral Rule), funeral directors are required to provide you with a General Price List when you first talk, whether in person or by telephone.

The General Price List establishes the price or range of prices for all of the services and merchandise regularly offered by the funeral home. The list is yours to keep whether or not you complete arrangements with a particular establishment.

If your spouse died out-of-state or in any distant location, you should contact the funeral home in the city where the funeral services will take place to make arrangements. They will make arrangements to pick up the body and have it transported. If you contact a funeral home in the city where the death took place, you will end up paying a basic arrangements fee to both providers at an extra cost of $1,000-$1,500 or more.

Another option for selecting a funeral home is to seek out a local memorial or funeral society. These non-profit, non-sectarian groups began in the early part of the 1900’s to cut funeral costs through cooperative buying power. Memorial societies survey the price lists of funeral homes in their area and negotiate discounts for their members at cooperating funeral homes. Lifetime membership in a memorial or funeral society typically runs about $40.

In addition to providing a wide range of funeral planning services, memorial societies also serve as consumer “watchdogs” over the funeral industry. It was their efforts that resulted in the Federal Trade Commission’s enactment of The Funeral Rule in 1982 protecting funeral consumer rights.

FUNERAL COSTS

Funerals can be expensive. The average cost (nationally) of a funeral today is around $4800. However, funeral costs can vary widely depending on the funeral home, where you live and the types of goods and services you choose to purchase.

Generally, the costs of a funeral can be divided into two categories:

1. Services and facilities provided by the funeral home, funeral director and his staff; and
2. Merchandise, such as caskets and urns.