Our funeral plans allow you to pre-arrange, and pay for, the funeral director’s services associated with your funeral. Exactly what’s included will vary depending on what type of plan you choose.
In today’s article, we’ll be looking at what’s included in each of our funeral plans, and the potential benefits of paying in advance for your funeral.
Pre-paid funeral plans can offer peace of mind
Taking out a pre-paid funeral plan can help reduce the financial pressure on your family when you’re gone, and ensure that you get the funeral that you want. It also allows you to set your own funeral budget, saving your loved ones from worrying whether they’ve spent enough on your send-off.
Costs of funeral director’s services locked in
One of the key benefits of a Golden Charter pre-paid funeral plan is the guarantee that the cost of the funeral director's services included in your plan will be locked in at today's prices. Our plans also include an allowance towards third party costs. These are essential, non-funeral director services such as the cremation or burial fees, plus the minister or officiant’s fee to perform the service. These costs are outside of your funeral director’s control but will need to be paid for at the time of the funeral. The value of any allowance in your plan for third party costs may grow over time. However, there may be more to pay for third party costs if they exceed the allowance in your plan at the time of the funeral.
Respecting your wishes
A pre-paid funeral plan also includes the opportunity to set out your final wishes. You can record a number of personal preferences, from dress code to music. Besides letting your family know how you want your funeral to go, the paperwork for your funeral plan will provide detailed instructions for your funeral director.
Funeral plan flexibility
Golden Charter offers the flexibility of five different funeral plans to meet a range of needs, and suit different budgets.
Every funeral plan includes the professional services of a funeral director. This includes the provision of professional services and making all arrangements for the funeral, advice on the certification and registration of the death (and related documentation), and care of the deceased prior to burial or cremation (excluding embalming).
A coffin is included in all Golden Charter funeral plans, but the style of coffin depends on the plan chosen. For our Basic plan, which includes an unattended cremation without a service, a coffin suitable for cremation will be selected by the funeral director. The more comprehensive plans, like our Premier plan, include coffins of higher quality.
Our Premier plan also includes use of the funeral director’s chapel of rest, or service rooms for family viewings at pre-arranged times.
For plans that include a funeral service, arrangement of the service at a local cemetery or crematorium is also included, along with a hearse to a local crematorium or cemetery.
For a complete rundown of what’s included in each of our plans, and what’s not included, head to our ‘Compare our funeral plans’ page.
What’s not included in a funeral plan?
All funeral plans are designed to include the professional services of a funeral director. However, if you’re looking to purchase a funeral plan, it’s important to remember that most won’t cover the cost of optional items, including headstones/memorials; catering or venue hire for a wake; flowers; an order of service; or death notices. If you do want to add extra services, please let us know and we can find out if there are any additional charges before we process your plan.
