ILLINOIS FUNERAL DIRECTORS LAWSUIT DISCOVERY-yourfuneralguy

More info on ILLINOIS FUNERAL DIRECTORS ASSOCIATION LAWSUIT was disclosed yesterday. What they said about their coming court case was quite confusing.

Without naming the names of the parties involved this is what the executive director of the  IFDA said:

“The IFDA Preneed Trust began operating in 1980 under a license issued by the Illinois Office of the Comptroller which regularly renewed the license over the course of more than 25 years. At this juncture, our counsel is reviewing this legal filing to determine the most appropriate course of action to defend our Association, our members and the truth.”

The part that is a tad bit confusing is this: The current comptroller took away the IFDA’s license to manage the trust fund, because the IFDA should not have been given a license to manage the fund in the first place.

So how can a Comptroller renewing the license be a defense?

One lawyer sorted it out at deathcarelaw.com offered some insights.

Can anyone comment and enlighten me here?

Blog by Your Funeral Guy.

This is a sad state of affairs for the Funeral Industry, preneed and your funeral cost.

Statement E- mailed to me by the current IFDA executive director.

An apology, the last post on this subject was deleted due to to a computer malfunction.

Your Funeral Guy: Chris Rock Funeral?

No  as far as I know Chris Rock did not die. This guy however can be quite funny. Many times the best way to think about a funeral is through humor. One should not go so far as to take on the role of the Joker. Chris has put his head together on funerals. He will be doing a movie. In fact he co-wrote the  remake of “Death at a Funeral“

Laughter is one of the best ways to put some distance between you and death, grim reaper, vampires, your funeral  etc. The movie bucket list did a good job with this last year. In fact it has been said that laughter can reduce funeral cost because it puts more time between you and your final event.

The entertainment magazine Variety reports that the American version will be directed by Neil LaBute. The comedy will be done by Screen Jems. The film centers on a dysfunctional family where arguments, tension and stress reign.

Anyone working in the funeral business sees this sort of thing all too often. I look forward to “Death at a Funeral”

Blog by Your Funeral Guy.

Your Funeral Guy: NFDA to Defend Funeral Cost/ Industry/Preneed.

Breaking News January 29th 2009-This is an historic move on funeral cost, the funeral Industry and Preneed. (prepaid funerals) The National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) announced plans to reach the masses in the defense of their industry.

This was done in  reaction to two disastrous Scandals in 2008 -National Prearranged Services(NPS) and the Illinois Funeral Directors Association IFDA Preneed Trust Mismanagement Debacle. The NFDA will spent thousands of dollars to reach millions on a major television advertising blitz.

This will do nothing but raise the average cost of a funeral in the United States. I have estimated the average   funeral  cost to be $8,500.00 USD plus.

In times of deep economic trouble with folks demanding lower cost funerals. this is clearly an attempt to drum up business for an industry clearly in trouble with massive overhead.

The full press release can be viewed at Nfda.org

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Your Funeral Guy: Angies List-Watch it If You Prepay

It may surprise you to find out that prepaying a funeral(preneed) drives up the average cost of a funeral. mentioned in this blog prepaying a funeral is a very risky thing.  The Funeral Industry wants you to do this because they simply want to get the interest on your money.

Now Angie of Angies List says you must check out the funeral company giving you the funeral policy.

Angie Hicks of Angie’s List said pre-planning is simple. Pre-planning though should not be confused with prepaying.  This was said in an Indiana News Outlet.

“When it comes to making payments, you need to take into consideration the sustainability of the company you’re working with. The last thing you want to do is to have prepaid a funeral and find out the company has gone out of business before the funeral,” said Hicks.

That means, said Angie, you really need to do your homework before signing anything.

“You need to do more research than just the convenience factor to find out how long they’ve been around. What their reputation is and exactly who controls the money they are putting down for that funeral. Is it the funeral home or is it outsourced,”

Angie said: There are laws in Indiana about how your money is handled by the funeral home when you prepay. Make sure you understand them, before you give anyone your money. “

In 2008 many folks including funeral directors did not check out the Illinois Funeral Directors Association IFDA  Preneed Trust or National Prearranged Services. Both Funeral Homes and the public lost money. There were lawsuits. Again this drives up the average cost of a funeral. Often there is a disaster for you, if the funeral company has financial problems or goes out of business.

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Your Funeral Guy: Funeral Industry/Preneed Begs To Be Regulated.

The funeral and preneed industry is begging to be regulated. They are realing from the NPS Preneed Trust Scandal (national prearranged services) and the IFDA Preneed Trust Scandal Illinois Funeral Directors Association  from Last Year.

The problem is you cannot squeeze the toothpaste back in the tube. I believe the reputation of the funeral industry is now beyond recovery unless there is the bold move of making money on a lot of low cost funerals is made. Many funeral homes will have to adapt this strategy just to survive.

An interesting article was recently posted on this in Missouri the home of the National Prearranged Services disaster entitled:

Pre-need funeral legislation requires providers “be of good moral character”

Problem is you cannot legislate good moral character. when the reputation is gone the reputation is gone.

Here is a quote from the article:

“I don’t know of any other profession … (that) has come to the legislature to say, ‘Please regulate our industry more, please audit us more, please investigate us more because we want to make sure the public is confident in our industry and in our profession and in the whole pre-need process,’” said Donald Otto, executive director of the Missouri Funeral Directors Association.

Blog by Your Funeral Guy

Rember to find the IFDA and NPS  info at

http://www.lowercostfuneral/rbrianblog

Author

Your Funeral Guy: IFDA Information Has Been Moved!

Today I am going to inform you of a little your funeral guy, blog and funeral cost house cleaning.Some of the information I have gathered on the Funeral Industry disaster on Illinois Funeral Directors Association and the IFDA Preneed Trust is no longer available at the old location.

Info has been moved from IFDA.wordpress.com to

http://www.lowercost funeral.com/rbrian blog.

If you saw information there before, You can find it at the new location. Simply search the site.

In fact the entire http://www.ifda.wordpress.com  blog has been deleted. The blog will not be coming back. At the new loction tags and categories have been removed that relate directly to funeral homes and individuals.

If individuals and funeral homes are politicians from county coroners to United States Senators or US Presidents the tags and categories are still there.

Just thought you would like to know. I know that some of you have repeatedly gone to that site for funeral industry information.

If you have any questions on this, put them in a comment and I will answer.

All the best,

Your Funeral Guy.

Your Funeral Guy: Funeral Cost for Profit and Not For Profit.

This may come as a surprise to you and your funeral cost. It is Not for profit Funeral Homes. I first ran into this as I was interviewing for my first job as a Funeral Director. The first not for profit funeral home I ran into was Valley Funeral Home in Appleton, Wisc.

This is from their website:

“This means that the profits that the funeral home makes are returned to the families we serve for that year in the form of stocks and dividends. (80% stock, 20% dividends.) Getting established this way was a challenge.”

Very interesting, returning cost to the client! You.

Another approach on the not for profit funeral home can happen because of dual funeral home registration. Some jewish funerals will be done this way where the cost savings goes immediately to the consumer. Quoting from the DailyRecord.com news article.

“The extra money goes back to the Jewish community, which is where it should be going,” Apter said. “We have no shareholders to answer to, no huge board of directors, just myself and Mark and our staff. If you look at the economic climate today … I saw this time after time — a family walks in, they’re handed a statement, and the cost is very high.”

Indeed different funeral guys operating out of the same facility may make it possible for the consumer to have lower funeral expenses. Kudos to these two funeral guys!

Blog by Your Funeral Guy

Be sure to let me know how you lowered the cost of a funeral.

Your Funeral Guy: New High for Average Cost of a Funeral

Is there going to be a new golden age for those who charge funeral cost? Some funeral industry folks think so. I disagree. More and more folks in today’s economy are choosing the lower cost funeral.

Some say it will be due to a steep rise in the death rate. I have been hearing that since I went to mortuary school in 2001. It has not happened. Mistakenly, I thought it might happen fast…and  I would make great money as a Funeral Director.

Here is a quote on this:

“Though dipping slightly over the last several years, and expected to be stagnant for several more, the death rate of about 8.1 per 1,000 people is expected to inch significantly upward sometime in the next decade and eventually go as high as 10.9.

The exact dates are tough to pinpoint because of the size of the generation and medical advances”-the Deuce

Experts have been predicting the death rate will sky rocket since the early 1990′s. It has not happened.

And then there is a more scarier statistic- some are saying that the average cost of a funeral including burial is $12-15,000 USD.

“Though it may vary slightly from one state to the next, the average cost of a funeral in the United States ranges from $12-15,000. This is heavily dependent upon the type of funeral a family chooses. At present, there are pre-paid insurance plans available for “End of Life” expenses.” -Chad Willey

In my estimation people are now choosing lower cost funeral options. If this trend continues the average cost of a funeral will be reduced.

I therefore stand on my estimate of average traditional  funeral cost to be $8,5000 USD in 2009. (This does not include burial expenses) Be advised that there are many folks out there now saying things about funeral cost that may not be true. always check your information. Your funeral guy checks funeral industry reports and with folks around the country before making statements.

A Reminder: Preplan your funeral but do not make it prepaid!

Blog by Your Funeral Guy

Your Funeral Guy: Downsizing a Funeral

Downsizing a Funeral helps you to come in under the average cost of  a funeral. this has been happening since the economic downturn. Folks are still doing funerals but for less funeral cost.

Another author on funerals besides myself was recently quoted about  shopping for a funeral and paying less.

Robert Webster whose book (“Will they see me naked when I die?) that has become fairly popular is pictured below.

I have no connection with Mr.Webster other than reading the book and writing a review on Amazon about the work. Most folks are concerned about an explicit section of the book on human  body parts. Webster explores his experiences as a funeral director, and presents the mindset of the funeral director. He offers no money saving tips on funerals.

Here is what Mr. Webster said when he noticed the downsizing of Funerals.

“We get one to three calls a day to say (they’re) price shopping,” said Robert Webster of Webster Funeral Home.

Webster, who has written a book on the business, said less expensive options such as cremation have become increasingly popular.

“Everybody says there’s no economic downturn, the funeral business is recession-proof, well it’s not true,” Webster said. “People are still going to die, they’re not spending like they used to in the past.”

The full article can be found here.

Downsizing in Louisiana also seems to be occurring.

Despite the economic downturn, there’s still one industry that will always have a steady supply of paying customers, the funeral industry. Steve Newman, General Manager of Rabenhorst Funeral Home, says the average cost of a funeral is $7,500. Add in the burial plot and expenditures can exceed $10,000 or more.

Some funeral homes across the country are actually offering discounts, burial plans for as low as $1,700 in some cases. They say customers are searching for the best deals they can find.

For the Louisiana situation view the article on the web.

The Louisiana average cost of a funeral may very well be $7,500.00USD. My research indicates the average cost of a funeral  nation wide to be $8,500.00USD.

Blog By Your Funeral Guy

Your Funeral Guy:Why Is The Funeral Cost in Preneed Confusing.

Preneed muddies the waters on Funeral Cost. When doing preneed you must be careful about your funeral cost contract. When there is a preneed or at need funeral contract most folks are nervous because they are dealing with their own death or someone elses for the first time.

The main argument for preneed is that you lock in todays prices for the future. What is not said is that the funeral director and the preneed company get the interest on your money. In some cases bit of that interest comes to you.

I have actually seen some preneed contracts that are 20-40 years old where the funeral directors cut is more than the funeral.

There is another way that preneed can be confusing. Each state has different rules, and different enforcement practices.

Preneed policies are suppose to be transferrable to any geograhical area. I have  seen local funeral directors refuse to transfer policies. A good share of funeral directors are honest folks but sometimes they cannot resist preneed greed. Many find the commissions or interest on your money irresistable.

Preneed is truly the curse of the Funeral Industry and may bring about it’s death.

Just about every time the funeral cost plus the funeral home owner’s cut brings you in far above the average cost of a Funeral.

Blog By Your Funeral Guy

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