Preneed: A Pandora's Box of Problems
Two recent newspaper articles help to underscore the distinct directions the funeral ritual seems headed.
The Kansas City Star reported on how more families are opting for personalization over formal funeral rituals. As the article indicates, personalization often requires the funeral director to spend more time with the family planning a memorial that is…
The Scarborough Council just announced increases in their funeral, cremation and burial prices. There are going to be nearly 80 different levels of charging Some of the charges depend on whether they involve cremation, burial, the times when funerals take place, the use of the service chapel and scattering the remains and whether the remains…
The National Funeral Directors Association has taken the lead in getting legislation introduced to eliminate the dollar cap imposed on qualified funeral trusts. While I hope the NFDA succeeds, it won’t be without a fight from the IRS.
As the death care industry inches towards the non-guaranteed preneed transaction, the IRS will express its concerns over abusive trusts. …