Pre-payment Plans
Essential information on arranging and paying for your own funeral in advance.
Deciding to pay for your own funeral in advance is an important decision, but it can be a very rewarding one. There are many reasons people choose to specify their arrangements before they die, including:
- Ensuring you have a say in what happens once you have passed away
- Wanting to lift the burden from family or friends
- Not having anyone you feel can make arrangements for you
- Financial reasons
At Freeman Brothers Funeral Directors, we understand that this can be a complicated decision for someone to make. To help, we have created five schemes that are structured to provide different levels of service, from a simple cremation to a more complex funeral, with a church service if you wish. And you can be sure that, whichever scheme you choose, we will always provide an excellent level of service when the time finally comes. We guarantee there will be nothing for friends or family to pay, other than additional services they might choose. Your funds are kept in trust by an independent firm and we apply to them to pay the account once the funeral takes place. Information and advice on our schemes is available via each of our offices in Billingshurst, Crawley, Horsham and Hurstpierpoint.
Big Deal, Small Talk.
We recognise that not everyone feels a pre-paid funeral is suitable for them, but some may wish to leave a record of their preferences for their own funeral. Our ‘Big Deal, Small Talk’ leaflet is an excellent way of demonstrating these: although some people think that the idea of discussing their wishes is a “big deal”, in reality all that is required is some ‘small talk’.
The leaflet is designed to be completed without any assistance and left in a safe place for loved ones to consult in the event of a death. Alternatively, it may form the basis of a discussion with friends and family as, for some people, it is important to know that the funeral being planned is appropriate for those who will be attending it. These leaflets are available free of charge from any of our branches.
Pre-payment Schemes:
Basic Scheme
Cremation Only
Advice and help when the arrangements are made
Bringing the Deceased into our care from within mainland UK, and preparation and care in our Chapel of Rest
The day and time of the service
Provision of the hearse and necessary staff
Provision of a coffin (as described)*
Visiting the Deceased in the Chapel of Rest
Procession of the cortege from home
Provision of limousine(s)
If cremation, Crematorium and doctors' fees
Officiant's fees
Administration of donations
If burial, interment fee**
Church fees
A notice in the local paper
Provision of Orders of Service
Provision of a Condolence Book
Provision of a scatter tube (cremation) or oak cross grave marker (burial)
Ability to add additional items at prevailing rate
Simple Scheme
Cremation Only
Advice and help when the arrangements are made
Bringing the Deceased into our care from within mainland UK, and preparation and care in our Chapel of Rest
The day and time of the service
Provision of the hearse and necessary staff
Provision of a coffin (as described)*
Visiting the Deceased in the Chapel of Rest
Procession of the cortege from home
Provision of limousine(s)
If cremation, Crematorium and doctors' fees
Officiant's fees
Administration of donations
If burial, interment fee**
Church fees
A notice in the local paper
Provision of Orders of Service
Provision of a Condolence Book
Provision of a scatter tube (cremation) or oak cross grave marker (burial)
Ability to add additional items at prevailing rate
Standard Scheme
Cremation Only
Advice and help when the arrangements are made
Bringing the Deceased into our care from within mainland UK, and preparation and care in our Chapel of Rest
The day and time of the service
Provision of the hearse and necessary staff
Provision of a coffin (as described)*
Visiting the Deceased in the Chapel of Rest
Procession of the cortege from home
Provision of limousine(s)
If cremation, Crematorium and doctors' fees
Officiant's fees
Administration of donations
If burial, interment fee**
Church fees
A notice in the local paper
Provision of Orders of Service
Provision of a Condolence Book
Provision of a scatter tube (cremation) or oak cross grave marker (burial)
Ability to add additional items at prevailing rate
Principal Scheme
Burial or Cremation
Advice and help when the arrangements are made
Bringing the Deceased into our care from within mainland UK, and preparation and care in our Chapel of Rest
The day and time of the service
Provision of the hearse and necessary staff
Provision of a coffin (as described)*
Visiting the Deceased in the Chapel of Rest
Procession of the cortege from home
Provision of limousine(s)
If cremation, Crematorium and doctors' fees
Officiant's fees
Administration of donations
If burial, interment fee**
Church fees
A notice in the local paper
Provision of Orders of Service
Provision of a Condolence Book
Provision of a scatter tube (cremation) or oak cross grave marker (burial)
Ability to add additional items at prevailing rate
Supreme Scheme
Burial or Cremation
Advice and help when the arrangements are made
Bringing the Deceased into our care from within mainland UK, and preparation and care in our Chapel of Rest
The day and time of the service
Provision of the hearse and necessary staff
Provision of a coffin (as described)*
Visiting the Deceased in the Chapel of Rest
Procession of the cortege from home
Provision of limousine(s)
If cremation, Crematorium and doctors' fees
Officiant's fees
Administration of donations
If burial, interment fee**
Church fees
A notice in the local paper
Provision of Orders of Service
Provision of a Condolence Book
Provision of a scatter tube (cremation) or oak cross grave marker (burial)
Ability to add additional items at prevailing rate
* Willow coffins are available to be added to any plan at a supplement.
** The schemes do not cover the purchase of the plot if this is required in the chosen place of burial. We recommend this is done as soon as is practical (ideally, prior to the death taking place) to avoid situations where the chosen burial place cannot accommodate further burials at the time of death.
Pre-payment Schemes documentation.
Our Pre-payment Schemes give you the peace of mind that comes with knowing your arrangements are in place and family members will not have to make difficult decisions or face unexpected expenses at a time of bereavement.
Download our Funeral Expenses Scheme Application Form and Scheme Guide for more information.
Tailor-made Pre-payment Scheme.
If none of our tiered schemes offer what you would like, we also provide a Tailor-made Scheme, which we will construct on a one-off basis to meet your specific requirements. Like the plans above, it will be priced at today’s costs and the money kept in trust until it is required. No-one will have to pay more.
Our Tailor-made Scheme is ideal for those whose choice of arrangements would not be covered by our tiered schemes. Reasons for this may be:
- Wanting a very simple arrangement, for which even our Simple Scheme is too complex
- Wanting a very complex arrangement, perhaps not in the local area or involving several locations
- Wanting something not covered in the tiered schemes such as a metal casket or horse-drawn hearse
- Wanting to only pre-pay for an ashes interment, or headstone
We will price your requirements at today’s rate and then confirm your arrangements in writing. If you would like to discuss any pre-payment scheme in more detail, please contact us.
Frequently Asked Questions.
My solicitor says I should get a pre-paid scheme. Why?
Your solicitor can best advise you, but some people purchase a pre-paid scheme as a way to decrease their funds. This is different to giving the money to a family member or friend (which can have tax implications) as you are buying something.
How does it work?
We calculate how much it would cost to meet your requirements today and charge you that amount. The funds are invested until we need them. After the funeral, we assess the current value of the money paid and that is what we claim as costs.
Is my money safe?
Absolutely. We send your funds to an independent company that keeps the money in trust; the only way we can access that money is by submitting the funeral account to them. This means your money is totally safe and there will be no further costs charged to your family or friends, unless they choose to incur them by adding additional services, for which they will be charged at the prevailing rate.
Why should I use you rather than a larger, national scheme?
For many reasons. A company that sells only funeral plans will be using your money for marketing, costs, staff wages, commission to funeral directors and so on. We put every penny you give us into trust and don’t use it to run our business. Probably because of this, our extensive research shows we are very competitively priced against the larger companies. We’re a local firm you can come to visit at any time and we don’t use call centres miles away or salesmen paid by commission. And we’ve been around for over 160 years so you know you can trust us to still be here for years to come.
What about a whole-life assurance scheme? Isn’t that better?
Research shows that many of these schemes represent poor value for money. In many cases, you pay more than you ever get back and can’t ever miss a payment or you lose everything: that’s how those companies make their money and how they pay for TV adverts with well-known celebrities. With our plans, you know up-front how much you will pay and you know this will cover everything in your plan.
Call us on 01403 254590 or email mail@freemanbrothers.co.uk to start putting your funeral plans in place today.