After five months of trading Complaints and Answers, the Missouri State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors and the Missouri Funeral Trust have been assigned an October hearing date before the Administrative Hearing Commission.   The dispute between the State Board and the MFDEA’s master trust program has been waging for years over issues such as

In a prior post, we listed the records sought by the Missouri State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors when an examination is scheduled against a preneed seller.  In this post we will look at the five bullet points that involve the preneed trustee:

  • A current statement from your state or federally chartered financial institution/s

It has been more than a year since the Missouri State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors approved the expansion of the scope of financial examinations.  Consequently, preneed sellers up for their second preneed audit are receiving notices that request the following reports and documents:

  • A current statement from your state or federally chartered financial

Prosecutors and investigators have commented to our office about how difficult it can be to prove preneed fraud.   They won’t know whether the consumer has been harmed until the death of the contract beneficiary, and then whether the funeral is provided.  In Missouri, prosecuting a bad apple funeral director got much easier as of January

Missouri’s preneed seller records proposal would require preneed sellers to retain all communications that relate to their preneed contracts:

Any written (including electronic) communications between the seller and any preneed agent, provider, trustee, investment advisor, insurance company, purchaser and/or beneficiary of the preneed contract and any other person related to preneed contracts and the funding