1. Plan for the inevitable! Pre-arranged funerals can greatly reduce the cost of your emotions when the time finally comes to handle the death of a friend or loved one. But be smart about what you're buying up-front...don't let salesmen get the best of you because--after all--their job is to sell you services. And read the fine print carefully: In many cases you might only receive as much as 90% of the plan value refunded (you don't think the salesman will be around to give back his/her commission, do you?). And if you move to another city you might be out of luck if you try to transfer the policy to another funeral home/cemetery. Beware and read closely the paperwork first. Instead of buying a "pre-need" funeral policy, consider going to your banks and opening what's called a Totten Trust (also known as a "pay upon death" or "in trust for" account. It's not really a trust, but a special bank account payable at the time of death to whomever you designate. Upon death, that person withdraws the funds for funeral expenses.
   
2. Don't get suckered in to services you really don't need! Open casket "viewing" is another way for the cemetery industry to get into your pocketbook. Embalming is one of the most misunderstood and unnecessary services rendered by the industry, as are expensive caskets. (Don't waste your money on an expensive casket...if anything consider buying a "low-end" model and then if you're really determined to "preserve" the body, place the casket inside of a vault for burial. Remember, embalming and the use of sealed caskets/vaults only slow down the decomposition process, they don't eliminate it.)
   
3. Never deal with a funeral or cemetery representative by yourself! ALWAYS have someone else there with you, preferably a friend...someone that's not as emotionally attached as you/your family may be.
   
4. Consider providing your own casket! The Federal Trade Commission recently passed rules that make it possible for families to provide the casket to the funeral parlor/cemetery instead of forcing the consumer to purchase it from the funeral home or cemetery. And since the average mark-up on a casket can run anywhere from 300% - 500%...this is a tremendous money saving opportunity for consumers.
   
5. Place the obituary yourself! Really...many funeral homes will charge you as much as 3 times that actual cost of placing an obituary.
   
6. Ask the funeral home for a price list! It's an FTC rule that every home provide you with a price list upon request; be sure compare pricing of funeral homes owned by separate companies...with the number of homes being purchased by major corporations, it's important to get fair price comparisons.
   
7. Don't turn the funeral home loose with your loved one's "burial" insurance policy! Many consumers have funeral or burial insurance policies. Many of these policies come in $5,000 and $10,000 face values and some folks have made the mistake of turning the proceeds over to the funeral home to spend. Don't worry, they'll spend it alright...they'll spend all of it! Come on...use your head. You make an auto mechanic give you a written estimate before they start working on your car. Make the funeral home just as accountable...and don't tell them how much insurance (of any kind) that you have, or they just might try to help you spend all of it.
   
8. Think about spending more on the headstone/grave marker than on the casket. Let's face it, the casket goes underground or in a mausoleum, but the marker will be visible forever.
   

If you feel like you have been taken advantage of by the funeral or cemetery industry, contact one of the top consumer-advocates in the nation: Ms. Cuffie Joslin at (916) 363-4003. If you have any horror stories you'd like to contribute to an upcoming book that I'm in the middle of researching, please contact me directly via e-mail: bfd@bendover.com or send your letter to Benjamin Dover, PO Box 9822, Fort Worth, TX 76147-2822.

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