Your rights when buying funeral services
A federal regulation called the Funeral Rule, enforced by the Federal Trade Commission, applies to every funeral home in the country. It exists because funeral purchases happen at the worst possible time to comparison shop. These are the rights it gives you.
The itemized price list they must hand you
When you visit a funeral home and start discussing arrangements, the funeral home must give you a printed, itemized price list before showing you anything or discussing specific choices. It is called the general price list, and it is yours to keep. You do not have to ask for it; they must offer it. If you call instead of visiting, they must tell you prices over the phone.
The list must show the price of each individual good and service the funeral home offers: the basic services fee, transportation, embalming, use of facilities for a viewing or service, caskets, and so on. When you are looking at caskets or outer burial containers, separate price lists for those must be available before you are shown the merchandise.
Packages versus buying items one at a time
Funeral homes may offer packages, and a package can be reasonable if it contains what you actually want. But the rule is clear: you have the right to buy goods and services separately. A funeral home cannot require you to buy a package, and it cannot condition one item on your buying another, with one exception: a single basic services fee may be charged to everyone regardless of what else they choose.
If the itemized total for what you want comes out lower than the package price, you may buy itemized. Doing the arithmetic is allowed, and a funeral home that discourages it is acting outside the rule.
The right to decline what you do not want
You may decline any good or service you do not want, and the funeral home must adjust the price accordingly. Some specifics worth knowing:
- Embalming is not required by Minnesota law in most circumstances, and a funeral home cannot tell you otherwise. It may be a practical requirement for certain choices, such as a public viewing after several days, and the funeral home must explain that in writing rather than presenting embalming as automatic.
- For a direct cremation, you do not have to buy a casket. The funeral home must make an unfinished wood box or alternative container available, and must say so on its price list.
- You may buy a casket somewhere else, including online, and the funeral home must accept it without charging you a handling fee for doing so.
The written statement before you pay
After you make your choices, the funeral home must give you an itemized written statement showing each item you selected, its price, and the total, before you pay. It must also disclose any fees that are required by law or by the cemetery or crematory, and describe them as such. If a line on the statement does not match what you chose, ask before signing.
If the rule is not followed
You can report a funeral home to the Federal Trade Commission at reportfraud.ftc.gov and to the Minnesota Department of Health Mortuary Science Section at 651-201-4200, which licenses and inspects funeral establishments in this state. Keeping the price lists and the written statement you were given helps.