Last October, the Illinois Funeral Directors Association posted some “Frequently Asked Questions” on their website. The FAQ page was intended to address questions and concerns raised by funeral directors and consumers about changes being made to the IFDA Master Trust. Page 6 of that FAQ was addressed to the Illinois families that had
January 2009
Preneed Salesmen: calling the kettle black
By Bill Stalter on
Posted in Preneed
I learned the preneed business from an organization that used the term “preneed counselor”. Consumer advocates, and many funeral directors, rail at that characterization, and insist a salesman is a salesman, no matter what you call them.
For purposes of debate, I would agree that all preneed counselors are salesmen. However, not all preneed salesmen…
Strength in numbers: master trusts
By Bill Stalter on
A trade newsletter recently reported on funeral homes forming buying groups to negotiate better terms with casket vendors. Through cooperative alliances, the funeral homes can achieve the numbers required to negotiate better discounts from vendors. Those same economies of scale also benefit preneed programs that utilize trust funding. The larger trust not only provides the…
Home Funerals, Funeral Homes and Professional Liability
By Bill Stalter on
Posted in Consumer Advocates, Funeral
A Los Angeles Times story about Jerrigrace Lyons, California’s ‘death midwife’, generated ten days of entertaining barbs and counter-barbs on an SCI chat board. The article describes how Ms. Lyons assists families that choose home funerals in lieu of a funeral home.
One of the posts challenges a fellow funeral director for the…