What are Cash Advance Items in a Prepaid Funeral Plan?

 Is everything really taken care of?

Unless you've planned a funeral before, the term "cash advance items" may not be familiar to you. But if you want to protect your loved ones from financial worries at the time of loss, you need to know what cash advance items are. Knowing what these items are can make the difference between taking care of everything for your loved ones down to the final detail or leaving loved ones with unexpected expenses at the time of loss. 

What are cash advance items?

Cash advance items are funeral-related expenses that most people expect to find in a funeral service but that aren't provided directly by a funeral home. They are called cash advance items because they require cash on hand to pay for them. While the funeral home does not directly provide these services, they do facilitate communication and coordinate with all the different vendors involved. 

Why do I need to add cash advance items to my prepaid funeral plan?

If you are planning ahead, it's important to consider adding an allowance for cash advance items or itemizing options that you know you want to provide for in your plan. If you choose not to cover cash advance items in your prepaid funeral plan, your family may be required to unexpectedly have to pay several thousand dollars out of pocket, depending on the options chosen during the arrangement meeting. 

Here are the types of items you may consider adding to your plan:

• Death certificate allowance (most families end up needing 5-10 death certificates from the county)
• Obituary and death notice fees
• Clergy honorariums
• Vocalist/musician honorariums
• Clothing
• Police escort
• Flowers
• Grave opening/closing
• Crematory costs
• Cemetery burial space or cremation niche
• Installation of headstone or grave marker
• Perpetual cemetery care
• Estimated taxes
• State or cremation permits
• Monument/marker
• Catering for luncheon or reception
• Outside facility rental
• Transportation expenses for death away from home
• Reimbursement for family member's travel expenses
• Other unforeseen expenses  

The funds you set aside today will grow along with your prepaid funeral contract in order to guard against inflation. Keep in mind, however, that funeral homes cannot guarantee cash advance items because they do not control these costs.

When you carefully consider the needs of your family and include cash advance items in your prepaid funeral plan, you can tell your loved ones with confidence, "It's all taken care of." 

If you do not choose to set aside funds for cash advance items, please make your family aware of what is and isn't covered by your prepaid funeral contract to avoid any misunderstandings at a later date. 

You can get a copy of this post by downloading or printing out the FDLIC Flyer: What are Cash Advance Items in a Prepaid Funeral Plan? located below or at any time by contacting our funeral home and speaking to our pre-arrangement director.