pre Planning Funerals
Preparing for your funeral in advance is a both helpful to yourself to know that your wishes will be honoured, and a reassurance to your family that the know what you want.
There are many different options available, each with their own benefits depending on your needs.
Michael Hutchinson Funerals are happy to discuss what the best option would be for you.
Pre-Arranging
Prearranging your funeral does not have to be a financial transaction.
Prearranging your funeral is simply a matter of us recording your wishes and keeping the details safely with us until the time comes.
Often people decide to prearrange when they already have other funding arranged but have not formally recorded their wish.
Prepaid funerals are often more economical than Funeral Insurance.
You can pay in a lump sum or pay it off at whatever rate and frequency you can afford.
Funerals Bonds
- Funeral Bonds are an investment towards your future funeral expenses.
- You can put as much or as little away in a Funeral Bond that is in a secured trust account, specifically designed for your funeral expenses.
- Funeral Bonds are exempt from asset tests, which makes them different to just putting money into a bank account.
- You can put a lump sum in, make payments periodically, and even top up the amount held from time to time.
- The funds are held in trust until needed for your funeral.
- Funeral Bonds are like most other investments. They will earn interest over time, which will hopefully cover any increases in pricing for your funeral.
- Funeral Bonds are not tied to the specific funeral arrangements, and are easily transferred to another funeral home if you move away from the areas we provide services to.
- Cremation / Cemetery Fees – In order to lock in your pricing, we recommend that you check to see if your chosen crematorium or cemetery will allow you to pay for their services today. This allows you peace of mind on the price, but can also guarantee you have the grave or memorial site of your choice.
Insurance
There are a variety of insurance options that you could consider to fund your funeral.
Funeral insurances themselves vary widely and we suggest that you investigate the terms and conditions of any insurance you are considering.
The main benefit to funeral insurance is the quick claims process with most funds processing payment within a few days of the claim.
Life Insurance generally has a higher payout than funeral insurance, but also is a longer claims process.
Superannuation can often have insurances attached as well as the funds remaining. Superannuation itself can also be a lengthy process to claim.
Once you have put your plans in place, whichever option you choose, make sure your family knows that you have chosen Michael Hutchinson Funerals and where they can find your paperwork when the time comes.
