My experience with a couple of those cremation seminars-if you might be interested
 

I recently decided to attend a couple of the seminars on cremation that we see in our mailboxes or in the Daily Sun. I wanted to understand what each company offered, as I am one of those types who likes to have their ducks in a row...
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First, I would recommend attending one of the seminars (the free lunches offered as an incentive are good) to learn for yourself and ask questions pertinent to your situation. The "seminar" portion lasts about 20-30 minutes (depends upon the number of attendees and questions), so it is not really tying up a lot of your time. One of the two presenters was a bit more forward in wanting to set up a follow-up meeting, so you do need to be willing (and it is ok) to tell the presenter that you want to review the information before committing to a follow-up meeting.

Full disclosure: I only attended two of these seminars, as I was impressed enough with the presentation of one of the two representatives, and the follow-up web work I did with that company, that I will be moving into signing 3 contracts with that company.

The first presentation I attended was good, but going in I knew that I would not sign a contract with that company right away, as I was there to learn about the process and hear their sales pitch (that is what these seminars really are so understand that going in). I would suggest that you should attend more than one seminar and do NOT sign anything until you do so.

So, company "A's" information sharing (re: sales pitch) met my learning goal. In fact, I was under the impression, based upon this ONE seminar, that they offered security on my investment (the concern that a company could go out of business and losing my money) and also would arrange transport of remains from anywhere in the world back to Florida at no additional cost that other pre-planning businesses did not offer. Admittingly, I was tempted to sign up with Company "A", but as with anything, don't let emotion or lack of sufficient data make your decision for you. What I subsequently learned was that the presenter of company "A" did not lie, but definitely led me to believe that only their company would be the one to go with for being able to handle these concerns. As the pitch wound down, the presenter did provide a range of cost (about $400 difference depending upon some options you chose-those options were NOT identified at the pitch). The presenter then indicated that they would be coming around to each of us to set up a private appointment so that we could review the contract, even though we would not be under any obligation to sign the contract and buy their pre-planning package. Don't be afraid to politely decline! Note that there were several couples who signed up for the follow-up meeting. I would suggest if you can't politely decline a meeting at the pitch (unless you have already decided that this was the company for you), it will be harder to say no in a "one on one" in your home.

Company "B's" presentation was very good, and I was extremely thankful that I attended it. Giving credit where credit is due, Company "B" actually publishes their fee structure online so I knew approximately what the costs would be before going to their pitch. I could not find fee structures for company "A" or one of the other companies online. In all fairness, it should be noted that Company B does offer a package that was not online (it includes the insurance discussed below), but the cost structure was in line with the published costs (so no bait and switch). The representative was very good and talked about transparency, which is supported by their willingness to publish their fees online. Company "B's" representative informed me that my pre-planning payment would be placed in a Preneed Funeral Contract Consumer Protection Trust Fund (here is a link to the Florida regulations for your convenience: link see 497.456(4)) and I would receive a 100% refund if I decide to cancel my policy or if the licensee (in this case, Company "B") went out of business. Additionally, company "B" offered an addendum to the pre-planning contract which consists of basically "travel insurance" so that your remains would be returned to Florida from anywhere in the world at no additional cost to your survivors. This addendum does come with an additional cost (which is actually included in the package presented) and it would be the only money that is non-refundable and which is at risk should the company go out of business before their services were needed. If you don't travel and KNOW that you will be within 75 miles at the time their service is needed, you don't need the insurance. It is a risk based decision. I don't know how Company "A" manages their no additional cost transfer of remains as I decided to not pursue doing business with that company so the answer would be moot for me. The representative for company "B" indicated that she would contact me in about a week to see if I had additional questions or if I had yet made any decisions.

Company "A" gave us 3 days to sign a contract to receive a discount, whereas company "B" provided a 2 week window. Both representatives did point out that price increases would also be coming (this is not unexpected for ANY business), most likely around March 1st.

I suppose that if you truly wanted to do "due diligence", you should meet with more than 2 companies, but for me, it was not clear that the other potential "lunch seminar" companies would better than, in my case, company "B".

Good luck and I hope this post was helpful.

In my opinion, paying for a cremation or funeral before you are dead makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.

I’m not sure. Wouldn’t it be a true gift to your heirs? My mom did this, and all we needed to do was make one phone call. It worked perfectly. This was up north.

Not sure why OP refers to company “A” and “‘B.” Why anonymity?

We attended a seminar held by Baldwin Brothers. They’ve been in business some forty years and, by all accounts, have an excellent reputation.

The only reason we didn’t go for it is that they were not able to answer the question “what if they go out of business before I die?” Yes, I know there’s a “trust fund” which would (likely) refund a portion of the amount we prepay to the estate. That part was somewhat gray, but, more importantly, where does that leave our heirs if this occurs?

We just were not able to get a definitive answer to this question. We all know that anyone can go out of business despite their success today.

I think I wanted to hear they were part of an association that would honor the contract should Baldwin Brothers cease to exist.

great info. Looks like we need to sign up for some free lunches & hear the info. We want to leave our loved ones with the least amount of work to do. thanks much!

I understand and respect the hesitancy. Perhaps if one is in a situation where the end is closer than desirable, it would be less of a concern?

Agreed but possibly for another reason. Life is funny you might move out of the area before you pass and good luck getting your money back.

Based upon the information I collected, I can cancel and receive a 100% refund (less the travel insurance premium) at any time prior to using the service. I will be sure that this is specifically in the contract I sign.

Florida has many laws/regulations pertaining to senior citizens that may not be true in other states. As with any contract, it needs to be spelled out as to the expected deliverables and not assumed.

Perhaps you don't have children or other relatives who would have to deal with the cremation/funeral when you die.

My parents paid for their burial, gravestone, perpetual care, and memorial service years ago. When they die, my sister and I will have enough on our plates to deal with. This will be just one less thing.

We did this for my mother and it really was wonderful. The people at the society were great, they handled everything. They were respectful and took care of it, we got the time we needed after she passed and that was that. Contrasted that with my step-dad, holy moly was that stressful. The confusion, the funeral home, calls, meetings, arraignments, on and on.

I can't speak to what this guy saw or the seminars or whatever, but getting it all figured out ahead of time when you're rational and not dealing with grief is a blessing. It was also cheaper all said and done and not an immediate outlay that you didn't expect. I'll definitely get something like this when we get closer to the finish line.

Paying for anything after you are dead is a bit difficult.

Putting affairs in order to relieve some of the stress on those you leave behind seems like a very thoughtful and considerate thing to do.

And as others have pointed out, things change and people move so be careful.

What happens
 

What happens if the company disappears with all your payment?

One thing I have learnt with dealing with businesses, is that if there is a time limit for a discount, you will get that discount way past their limit.
Never be hassled to sign quickly.
Give yourself time to evaluate all offers, and contracts, make your decision, then tell the company you still want the discount, if they say you are out of time, tell them you are going elsewhere.
You will still get it.
I have never been refused.

I agree. Why the alphabet soup? It’s ok to name them.

I think it makes no sense NOT to. Do you have an iron clad will? Did you pay a lawyer for that? Do you intend to leave it to someone else to take care of your final needs.? Do you want to be cremated and dont care where your ashes go? BUt mostly, youre leaving a task to an alleged loved one during their most difficult time because you dont want to do it yourself.

Mine covers me even if I move out of the area. They partner with a crematory to have me cremated in that area.

Yeah, why secrets about the name? Anyway, you dont necessarily have to pay in advance. Have your wishes documented. Cremation desire 1 and 2. Its not really all about paying in advance for a cremation. Its more making your wishes known and making sure the money is left to pay for it. The main thing is where you want your ashes to go. I can definitely see buying your own crypt box at the cemetery of your choice in advance. (I did). Now all that family has to do is get the cremation done and everything else is in place...

I agree with making your wishes known in advance and providing an inheritance to pay for it. That can be specified in your will. But, I don't agree with paying for it in advance. Things change, companies go out of business, people move, and how can you be sure that the people who will handle the funeral will even remember that it is already paid for?

Great insights - thanks for that...but the A and B reference was a fail.

I don't get it. WHEN you die, the funeral home passes through a modest state determined cremation fee to those handling your estate. Why add a layer of hassle beforehand?

Cremation
 

Or you can sign up for a free cremation, just Google it as long as you allow them to use your body for science. The only hitch of course is if you did somewhere else than nearby in Florida. But I would imagine the course removing a body is not terribly expensive as it's just dead weight

I absolutely 100% recommend having prepaid funeral plans. Plans made in 2014 with Baldwin Brothers recently paid off. Only additional cost was for newspaper obits. Compassionate, seamless and was a relief for me and my family. No decisions had to be made at a stressful time.

I went to one at Bonefish by the big Nat'l. sales company. Saved hundreds for my Mom's cremation by assembling the items I did & didn't want at a local funeral home. Nat'l. company couldn't believe I wouldn't sign. (the mini lunch wasn't worth $hundreds.....

We also attended two presentations from competitive companies. Going into this, we felt it was something we wanted to do, but did not know anything about it. I have to admit, that we are the kind of people who tend to over-analyze everything. This was our experience:

After the luncheon with the first company, we felt very pressured by the presenter to set up a follow-up discussion in our home (to the point we felt uncomfortable). We thought that once she was in our house she would put even more pressure on us and it would be hard for us to get her to leave without a signed contract, so we declined. We later contacted their storefront office in The Villages, asked to speak to the manager, explained the situation, and requested to talk to that person (instead of the pushy-presenter) in their office instead of our house. We were accommodated and the manager was very nice, not pushy at all, and answered all our questions. We wanted to do some comparative shopping, so we did not sign a contract.

We thought the presentation at the luncheon of the second company was more informative and less emotional, which we appreciated. Maybe because we had already been educated in the office of the first company, we found this presentation much better and no pressure whatsoever to do anything. Again, we were hesitant to invite a sales person into our house, but we asked for a private session at their office in The Villages. The private session was excellent and mostly what we talked about was the differences between the two companies. We also contacted the first company for them to confirm and explain any differences. We learned a lot.

We also contacted a funeral home who has been in business for many, many years in this area. We met with them...no luncheon...no pressure....pure information. Also excellent. Several difference were noted and discussed.

We put together a comparison chart on these three options. There were differences between all of them. I don't like to give out the names because none of the differences were bad, mainly personal preferences. We took a lot of time to make up our minds, and we made several follow-up calls/emails to all three. We ignored all of the BS "sign now because prices will be increasing" threats, and in the end, so did they. All knew we were doing serious research, and they gave us our space.

We chose the second company. We called the other two and thanked them for their time and explained that the option we chose worked best for our particular circumstance.

Because everyone's personal and family situation is different, I would suggest that you not take anyone's recommendation or opinion. Just do your own due diligence. First decide if preplanning a cremation (or burial) is the route you want to take, and if so, move forward as you would with any major purchase. Include your family in your decision so that everyone knows what to do at the time of your death (regardless if you pre-pay or not).

My father set his up many years ago and we were so thankful he did. I only had to make one phone call to them other than the ones to family and they took care of everything just as he wished. They offered assistance for family members with bereavement counseling and were so professional in meeting my father's needs and handling every step.

Excellent synopsis of the presentations. I went to one last year and I can probably guess which company was B. Since I do travel, the added travel protection was well worth the cost. Most importantly, I now have peace knowing my family won’t have to make these decisions in their time of grief.

Be careful if you’re Catholic
 

It has come to my attention that some Funeral homes are offering to divide the cremains between the surviving children. This is not acceptable if the deceased is an observant Catholic as the Church requires the cremains be kept together and buried, not kept on the mantle.

Thanks. Very well written and excellent informative advice.

Thank you for re-enforcing the original topic of this thread. You actually laid it out better than I did. I would almost believe that we were at the same luncheon based upon your description of the pressure to meet privately by the one presenter.

I would re-iterate that this thread was not started to discuss pre-payment versus waiting, but to share my experience in going to these seminars and that it is a potential learning opportunity.

One of the questions/comments I replied to, but in retrospect, was ineffective in the method I used was why I did not name the two companies. My original response was: "I chose to not name the companies, as I did not want to "taint" anyone who chooses to attend or not attend a seminar based upon my posting. Company "A" might be a more viable option for someone based upon their personal circumstances. I wanted to give people something to think about and perhaps it will give them ideas for questions to ask which might make the experience more valuable for them, such as a follow-up on the point below about how secure from loss would the investment be?" I will add to this to make it even clearer that the subject was not to identify which company is better in my opinion, which I would have done by "naming names".

I tried to be as objective as possible in my description, and based upon questions here such as what if I move? or what if the company goes out of business?. I did answer them more directly, although they are still brought up here. But guess what? These questions are why you SHOULD go to these seminars and get your answers straight from the company representatives. Should you not like the answer(s) you still have the choice to not pre-pay or to deal with a specific company.

There are those who suggest leaving the money in a will or trust to pay for the costs. Do you know (don't assume) as to WHEN those funds will be released specific to your circumstances? Is it possible that your family will be paying up front and can they afford to do so, while they await re-imbursement from the will/trust? Are you aware of the process upon death for handling your remains and the timing? Do your instructions specify the funeral home to handle your remains? Are you aware that if your remains are sent to the wrong funeral home there are a lot of costs involved? Do you know who makes the decision and when they have to make the decision as to the handling of your remains? I actually got information about the handling of the remains/timing from the representative of company "B". I also recognized what I didn't know when I went to the first seminar that I learned in the second seminar. Miskra did a great job in follow-up to go back to the original company and get their responses.

Overall, it is still YOUR responsibility TO YOUR FAMILY to become informed of what happens and when before process becomes reality. It is your choice as to the how.

Very helpful info. And a reminder to have the will and trust docs updated to reflect your wishes. We recently went through this and our beneficiaries willb able to deal with all the details in peace.

There are several companies that you can choose if you want to donate your body to science. The company I chose was not in Florida however, they will handle everything when the time comes.

Glad I don’t have to deal with this. My daughter is in “that line of business” so she will take care of us when the time comes. So nice to not have that decision to make.

We went through both. My wife's parents had everything pre-paid and pre-planed in a time of grief, it was all done as they wished.

On my side, while there were no disputes between my sister and I, we thanks to my great, great, great, grandfather have a huge family plot. By pre-paying you make your decision as to what and where clear to all. For us yet another unresolved dispute.
I want to be buried, wife want to be cremated. Solution-beats me.

Re: delivering your remains as a plus

I expect they use priority mail. Value about $10.

I'm a whole body donor through Medcure if you're interested.

Well I moved to the villages 10 years ago, I just went To one of the funeral homes and signed up for cremation and transfer to Bushnell Military cemetery. Paid in full, so just waiting to die. LOL I have no heirs, So I did it just for me.

Excellent information. Thank you for taking the time for the benefit of your neighbors!

Another reason to go to the seminar and ask questions specific to your final plans, but you might need to meet one on one for a detailed discussion to get those answers. At least in the discussions I had at my two seminars, company "B" indicated that the "travel insurance" is optional whereas company "A" did not present it as optional, nor as an "insurance policy". One needs to make an appropriate informed decision and just reading information online in these forums is not, IMO, something I would rely upon.

Keep in mind that the requirements for handling of remains may be different in other states (I don't honestly know), not to mention outside of the US (which I would feel is more likely). Are there documentation requirements and associated fees to bring the remains back into the US? What if your final plans include embalming for a viewing prior to cremation? I would suggest that the cost to transport embalmed remains would be quite a bit higher than $10 via priority mail.

I say again, there is value in at least getting information specific to your personal desires and then planning accordingly.

I had a word with our local council, and they said, provided my body is double bagged, they will take me away in the green compost bin, free of charge on normal collection day!

Thank you for your service. I am sorry to hear you have no heirs, but I am glad that you made plans so that in the end, your wishes are carried out.

Hopefully you have many years to go, so "party hearty", and enjoy each day the best that you can.

Planning for your demise
 

We went to seminars but didn’t commit. The one very valuable thing we got was a pre-planning guide from Paige-Theus in Leesburg. We worked on the book for many hours filling in the blanks and including copies of supporting material and noting where the originals are stored. Our family members have detailed letters including photos of what the main reference manual looks like, the storage locations and safes of these important original documents, a parting letter of instructions and other mushy stuff, as well as instructions on how the trust works and doesn’t need probate. The will, however, will need to be probated but has no financial assets because it just has a clause that states anything I have that is not already in the trust belongs in it. Family needs cash soon. Set up a small bank accounts with your and your family member’s name. Multiple owners of accounts don’t need probate before the other person can get the funds. When one dies, the other uses the death certificate if required. Otherwise, withdraw when needed.