It’s not uncommon when the topic of death and funerals are in the news, for funeral directors to see an increase in enquiries about planning.
People like to plan for significant events in their life, and it makes a lot of sense that more and more people today are choosing to also prearrange their funeral and/or join a prepayment plan. This gives many peace of mind that eventually their wishes will be carried out and their family spared unnecessary worry about funeral arrangements and costs.
It might not be a priority or a reality for everyone to have a prepayment plan, but this does not mean that they cannot still pre-plan their funeral and record their wishes. Read on to find out what it means to pre-plan or prepay for a funeral.
What does it mean to Preplan a funeral?
The fundamental benefit to planning a funeral in advance is to take the opportunity to make your preferences about your funeral clear and lessen the responsibilities and stress for your family at such a difficult time.
You can choose how much detail your record, you may only have a couple of matters of importance.
There are a number of things you can think about such as lists of people to contact, clothing that needs to be worn, special music selections and many more.
We have put together a document outlining some useful information and reminders which you can download here.
What does it mean to Prepay a funeral?
There are several benefits to prepaying for a funeral. One of the most common reasons is to protect your family from the financial burden and emotional responsibility of making decisions when they are facing such a difficult time.
It is a benefit for families that prepaid funerals up to $10,000 are currently excluded from asset testing (under current government policy) when assessing eligibility for a subsidy for long-term residential care.
If you are worried about the cost to your family of your funeral once you pass it can be a good idea to start a fund to prepay the costs of your funeral. You can set up a prepaid fund several different ways and below are the most common.
- FDANZ Funeral Trust Pre-Paid Plan.
- Funds are held in the FDANZ Funeral Trust and paid out after the funeral service has been delivered. You can download a brochure here with further information.
- Your insurance policy may have options to include funeral cover.
- Your bank or financial institution may offer options to set up a prepaid funeral fund.
If you wish to preplan a funeral for the future or find out more about how to do this, we are happy to provide you with all the resources required during the planning process. You can find out more information about preplanning here or call us on 07 348 3600.
