Preneed

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Two years ago, the Missouri State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors met in Independence to discuss their staff’s recommendations for seller record keeping requirements and the scope of preneed examinations.  As the minutes somewhat reflect, the staff proposals were met with strong public opposition.   (This blog documented those issues in prior posts that…

In their last meeting, the members of the Missouri State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors took a small, but important pivot in the preneed examination process.  The State Board approved a recommendation made by the Financial Examination Committee that the Committee review each examination report and prepare the letter that accompanies the report to…

The legislation that would have converted the Missouri State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors from an industry board to a consumer board did not get to a vote on the floor, but got further than most expected.   Seeking to make the State Board more responsive to preneed consumers, Rep. McGaugh’s efforts got an unexpected…

For consumers who need installments to pay for their preneed arrangement, funeral directors report that the $100 monthly payment is the comfort threshold for most individuals.   For a widow planning her own funeral, the $100 monthly payment will require an installment term of six years or longer.  If the widow needs to also cover an…

This post will look at the first allegation made by the Missouri State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors against the Missouri Funeral Trust: MFT does not create or maintain any records of its activities as a preneed seller.   In subsequent paragraphs of the Complaint, the State Board will also challenge the adequacy of those…

Funeral and burial preplanning should be a part of every estate plan, but some web pages promoting estate planning can be misleading or impractical.   The estate planning page sponsored by Lawyers.com suggests that funeral arrangement preferences can be incorporated into a will or health care power of attorney to alleviate the financial and emotional burdens…

NPR’s second story on the funeral industry suggests that preplanning a funeral will typically require visits to multiple funeral homes.

NPR led their story with a consumer attorney sharing his frustrations with getting price information from funeral homes near his father.  To the attorney’s surprise, many of the funeral homes did not include general price…