Tag Archives: funeral home

Cremation Costs can vary by Thousands of Dollars-Your Funeral Guy

17 Jan dignity-memorial1

Cremation costs can vary by thousands of dollars. This is is an important factor when considering funeral costs and cremations costs. We have addressed this subject in several places before,-it is important to address this subject again.

You can view a video on this with more info here.

As with funeral cost, and cremation cost- it is very important to shop around.

The remains were brought to the cremation center at Sunland Memorial Park in Sun City. Dickson was quoted a price of $2,425 for what is called a “direct cremation.”

“I just told ‘em I wanted the bare basic just the ashes in a box no services no nothing,” he says.

At the time he thought it seemed like a lot of money for what he was getting. “I thought of it, but I thought what am I going to do, they’ve got the body here.”

Dickson paid the bill. But a few weeks later, an acquaintance of his wife said he had paid for a cremation around the same time and it only cost $600.

Dickson hit the phone and called about five different crematories in the valley — he received quotes of $400 to $2,400 for the same service.

But according to Arizona law, the Sunland Memorial Park did nothing wrong.

“We cannot control the prices. In other words this is free enterprise. A business is able to charge whatever they may want,” says Rudy Thomas, executive director of the Arizona Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers.

Thomas has heard the complaints before, but the FTC dictates that funeral homes nationwide don’t limit pricing. A consumer must physically be given a guide to funeral information if they are inquiring about services.

via www.myfoxphoenix.com

It is important to note that Sunland Memorial Park is a corporate facility specifically a Service Corporation International facility( NYSE: SCI)

Although this event is not a Service Corporation International Scandal, it does show the high pricing that can occur at an SCI Facility. This is something that the Funeral Consumer must be continually be made aware of.

Many times it is best inorder to save on Funeral Cost To Avoid a Corporate Funeral Home.

Funeral Industry| Funeral News| Funeral Blog by Your Funeral Guy

It is important to remember that the FTC does not regulate Funeral or Cremation Cost.

Enhanced by Zemanta

Former Funeral Director charged with Defrauding-YourFuneralGuy

17 Jan
NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 20:  Funeral director Pete...
Image by Getty Images via @daylife

A former Funeral Director in Michigan has been charged with defrauding Customers. In this case The director not only hurt the families that bought preneed or prepaid policies he also hurt the former business owner of the Funeral Home.

This serves as a warning to those who want to exit the funeral industry and the need to check out who and how they dispose of their business.

Mr. Prochnow had purchased the business portion of the Bennett Funeral Home on S. Dixie Hwy. just south of Albain Rd. in 2006 from Darrell Bennett, who retired with his wife to Florida after selling the business.
But Mr. Bennett, now 78 years old, said monthly payments were not paid and he discovered other payments for services were ignored. Over the past several years, he said he personally lost a total of about $325,000 to bad business. When he returned from Florida this summer to take over operations, the company was in shambles.
Mr. Bennett said the building was not properly cared for — there wasn’t hot water — and the vehicles, including the hearse and limousine, were being repossessed though he had paid them off 10 to 15 years ago.
“I can never imagine anything of this magnitude ever happening,” Mr. Bennett said. “It’s put me in the biggest hole I’ve ever been in my lifetime.”
In addition to accusations of stealing money from Mr. Bennett, Mr. Prochnow has been charged with accepting prepaid funeral payments and using the money for his own benefit.

via www.monroenews.com

This shows that just taking a bank note may not be the best strategy, may not be the best strategy in exiting the funeral business- in an age of Funeral industry decline, when profits are down and cremation is on the rise.

Funeral industry| Funeral News | funeral blog by Your Funeral Guy

This article presents one more reason as to why one should not purchase funeral preneed or aprepaid funeral.

Enhanced by Zemanta

Amazon.com and the Funeral Industry-Your Funeral Guy

15 Jan
Image representing Amazon as depicted in Crunc...
Image via CrunchBase

Amazon.com stepped up it’s selling to the Funeral Industry after October 2009 when it was revealed that WallMart was selling Caskets on line. The Fact that Amazon has a contract with an online casket provider for 67% off the list price of many caskets, points to the fact that the markup on caskets can be  300% or more. Not all funeral homes do this, there are lower cost funeral homes  and online casket providers where the markup is much less.

This supports what I have been saying for several years that many times the markup of caskets in the funeral home can be up to 500%!

What is interesting about amazon.com and other online vendors is that they sell directly to the consumer. This is a trend that will continue and more and more  Funeral vendors will be doing this!

In Fact Last Year the National Funeral Directors Association lobbied on behalf of the Bereaved Consumers Bill of Rights Act asking that online vendors like amazon.com be brought in under the Funeral Rule Regulations.

With the election of Republicans to the US House of representatives the passage of the Bereaved Consumers Bill Of Rights Act is unlikely to happen and caskets and other consumer funeral products being sold directly to the consumer for the short term will avoid  funeral regulations.

What is mentioned above is contributing to Funeral Industry Decline in the USA. The more that funeral goods are available online especially at popular sites like amazon.com the less the local funeral home will be needed and the more the funeral industry will decline.

Amazon.com (AMZN)
> Interesting Fact: Amazon sells a steel embalming table
> # of Employees: 21,700
> Most Recent Quarter Revenue: $7.6 billion
> Most Recent Net Income: $231 million

Amazon.com helped bring the funeral service online.  Like Wal-Mart, the company offers caskets in more than 50 different varieties.  Additionally, it sells a steel embalming table for $1,095 and pet urns for under $200.  Many caskets are sold at 67% off the list price, thanks to a partnership with Bestpricecaskets.com.

via 247wallst.com

Funeral Industry| Funeral News| Funeral Blog by Your Funeral Guy

your funeral guy has no affiliation with best priced Caskets.com http://www.bestpricecaskets.com/

Your Funeral Guy’s book Rest In Peace Insiders Tips to the low cost less Stressed Funeral is available online at amazon.com Presently Your Funeral Guy is not involved with the selling of  any Funeral Goods or products.

Enhanced by Zemanta

25 Funeral trends for 2011-Your Funeral Guy

12 Jan iStock_000013997019XSmall
local funeral home
Image via Wikipedia

Here are 25 funeral industry trends, funeral industry and Funeral predictions for 2011.

1. Traditional Funeral Industry will continue to decline.

2. Funeral Home profits will continue  be less.

3.The Number of “Lower Cost” or discount Funeral Homes will grow.

4. Cremation will continue to rise.

5. Funeral preneed scandals will continue to abound.

6. More bodies will be put in the wrong graves.

7. The number of people  cremated wrongly(mistakes) will grow.

8. More and more Funeral  facilities will be used for other services(like weddings and birthdays)

9 Number of Non Claimed bodies will continue to increase.

10. The use of  temporary Funeral Workers will grow.

11. More Funeral vendors will sell and communicate directly with the consumer.

12 Funeral homes will continue to use social media(facebook-Twitter etc) to communicate with Customers.

13. Video will continue to be important in communicating with the funeral customer

14 Funeral Industry companies will continue to diversify, going outside the Funeral Industry for income sources.

15. Home Funerals will increase.

16. Green Funerals and green burials will rise.

17. Funeral home’s will continue to aggressively market through their websites and blogs..

18. Funeral Homes and Funeral company mergers will be more will be more and more

19. Legacy.com will continue it’s worldwide obituary empire.

20 . The use of Part time funeral directors will continue to grow.

21. Alkaline Hydrolysis as a form of disposition  will continue  to be accepted

22.Alkaline Hydrolysis machines will be in installed in more countries in the World Including the USA.

23.Alliances and financial agreements will continue to grow between funeral companies, vendors and funeral homes.

24. Funeral Cartels will continue to protect themselves from the free market. This has been addressed in several blog posts. The Cartels being companies and associations gaining protection from the courts and the State Legislatures.

25. The Bereaved Consumers Bill of Rights  Act will die in The US House of Representatives due to the Elelection of the Republicans



Funeral industry| Funeral News| Funeral Blog will continue

Enhanced by Zemanta

Weddings at Funeral Homes Funeral Facilities A Trend-Your Funeral Guy

10 Jan
A bride tossing her bouquet of flowers. Catego...
Image via Wikipedia

Weddings being held at  at Funeral homes and Funeral Facilities are a continuing trend in the USA. It often is less expensive and bookings are much easier to get. This is simply a consequence of the Great Recession and a slow recovery.

Across the U.S., more funeral homes are building such centers and marketing them not only as places to mourn the dead, but as sites for events celebrating the living, including birthdays, anniversaries, holiday parties, school proms and, yes, weddings.

The lure? It is often less expensive; there is greater availability; and the settings — inside and outside — can be nothing short of wedding-picture perfect.

via www.indystar.com

Weddings are similar to Funerals Both are event planning. folks can save money easily on a wedding by using funeral home facilities.

Funeral industry| Funeral News Funeral Blog by Your Funeral Guy

It si also a great way Funeral home owners can comat against funeral industry decline

Enhanced by Zemanta

Top Ten Batesville Casket Articles of 2010-Your Funeral Guy

6 Jan

Here are the top ten Batesville Casket Company Articles of 2010- Batesville Casket Company is the largest supplier of Caskets in the United States.

  1. Inside Batesville Casket Company it is very competitive, Casket sales are down so much so that it is at least in the manufacturing plants-it’s dog eat dog http://yourfuneralguy.wordpress.com/2010/11/09/inside-batesville-casket-company-its-dog-eat-dog-your-funeral-guy/
  2. Cremation is taking the Batesville Casket Company Down As more and More People demand cremation there is less need.for caskets. http://yourfuneralguy.wordpress.com/2010/02/05/batesville-casket-cremation-will-take-down-the-funeral-yourfuneralguy/
  3. ConnectingDirectors.com has been chasing Batesvile Caskets since 2009. The Purchase of Goria Vaults, non funeral companies peaks the young webmaster’s interest at this site. http://yourfuneralguy.wordpress.com/2010/10/08/connectingdirectors-com-continues-to-chase-batesville-caskets/
  4. The Wall Street Journal has done an article on Hillenbrand Inc, HI and funeral cost. WSJ often takes down their links.http://yourfuneralguy.wordpress.com/2010/08/06/wsj-article-on-hi-and-funeral-cost-decline-your-funeral-guy/
  5. Can the  casket company  be raised from the dead?http://www.yourfuneralguy.com/2010/11/can-casket-industry-rise-from-the-dead-your-funeral-guy/
  6. The Funeral industry Decline has sponsored many alliances. In 2010 Batesville Casket Partnered with FTD Floristshttp://yourfuneralguy.wordpress.com/2010/11/03/batesville-casket-company-partners-wftd-yourfuneralguy/
  7. In 2010 a Lawsuit against Batesville casket was dismissed.http://yourfuneralguy.wordpress.com/2010/09/28/lawsuit-against-batesville-casket-company-dismissed-your-funeral-guy/
  8. Batesville Casket Company won  a Mexican Knock off  Casket  Patent case.http://yourfuneralguy.wordpress.com/2010/12/20/batesville-wins-in-casket-patent-case-yourfuneral-guy/
  9. Early in 2010 Hillenbrand, Inc Had a Moody Credit downgrade.http://yourfuneralguy.wordpress.com/2010/01/11/nyse-hi-hillenbrandbatesville-casket-moodys-credit-downgrade-watch-yourfuneralguy/
  10. The Big story here is not a lawsuit. The Story is that the big three Casket Company may begin to sell directly to the consumers!http://yourfuneralguy.wordpress.com/2010/08/03/big-three-casket-companies-being-sued-your-funeral-guy/

There are more Batesville Casket Company Blog posts at your funeral guy blogs. Some are more controversial than those mentioned above.

Funeral Industry|funeral news| Funeral blog by Your Funeral Guy

Enhanced by Zemanta

Top Service Corporation International Articles of 2010-YourFuneralGuy

5 Jan dignity-memorial1

Here are the top ten Service Corporation International SCI, -NYSE:SCI posts of 2010. Service Corporation International.

Service corporation International is known for  Funeral Scandal. All these posts are not scandal related, many though include scandal. There are more stories at Your Funeral Guy blogs on Service Corporation International.

Top Ten Service Corporation Articles of 2010 By Your Funeral Guy

  1. There has been “evidence tampering” reporting in the SCI -Eden Memorial Park(up to 500 graves disturbed) – Service Corporation International NYSE:SCI Lawsuit -  World Largest Funeral Corporation Eden Memorial Park Scandal Evidence Tampering
  2. Service corporation International is suing  anotherFuneral home(s) over the name.-SCI sues over Funeral Home Name
  3. In Chicago a discount and High end Funeral Home are fighting over a name with Service Corporation International Suing-Chicago Area Funeral home name Lawsuit
  4. Worlds Largest Funeral Corporation turns to Tempoary Workers- This is not a good sign
  5. In 2o1o as in 2009 Service Corporation International had a Wrong body Wrong Grave Scandal
  6. Service Corporation International had a flag flying over a grave scandal in Skokie Illinois outside of Chicago
  7. Worlds Largest Funeral Corporation averted a strike with the Teamsters, Funeral Directors had to give up concessions
  8. Service Corporation International sweeps away Baby’s Momentos, More of this was reported in 2009.
  9. The World’s Largest Funeral Corporation produces shocking, weird  NYSE: SCI radio ad.
  10. SCI Employee comments in 2010 on what its like to work at the World largest Funeral Corporation. We also Covered This in 2009 with info from a different employee.

Funeral Industry| Funeral News| Funeral  Blog by Your Funeral Guy

Remember using an SCI Funeral Home facility will not usually save on Funeral Cost

Enhanced by Zemanta

Green Funeral Planner Available-YourFuneralGuy

4 Jan
Facebook logo
Online Green Funeral planner announced on Facebook-Image via Wikipedia

A Green Funeral planner is now available from the green Burial Council. This is a step that will move green funerals forward. It is important for the future of Funerals. This is an online Funeral Planning Tool.

KatesBoylston Publications announced this on FaceBook

Green Burial Council Launches Online Green Funeral Planning Tool SANTA FE, N.M. – The Green Burial Council announced it has launched the first online planning tool designed to allow families to identify and work more closely with funeral service providers offering eco-friendly options, according

via www.facebook.com.

This is a very good and creative move by the Green Burial Council- GBC. Many people are interested in Green flolks can go to plan there Green Funeral-Funerals and burials but just do not know where to begin.  Now there is a definitive place on line where they can go.

“We’ve had a lot of requests for a planning tool that could help consumers in what many regard as a somewhat confusing process,” said Joe Sehee, executive director of the GBC. “Not only does the planner eliminate confusion for families, but it raises awareness of the numerous funeral homes and cemeteries they can count on to embrace an ethic rooted in transparency, accountability and ecological responsibility.”

Anyone may receive a copy of the planning document by e-mailing a request to info@greenburialcouncil.org. The GBC is also encouraging funeral homes and cemeteries to make the tool available to families inquiring about eco-friendly funeral service.

via thefamilyplot.wordpress.com

Funeral Industry| Funeral News| Funeral Blog By Your Funeral Guy

Enhanced by Zemanta

Alkaline Hydroylsis, Bio Cremation(TM), Resomation(R) Machines, Installation Problems-YourFuneral Guy

3 Jan
Map of USA with Maine highlighted
Alkaline Hydrolysis machines may appear in Funeral Homes across  the USA in 2011 – the USA Image via Wikipedia

There seems to a problem with the installation of Alkaline Hydroylsis machines in  the USA and the World.. This goes for the High Pressure machines like the one going  into a  a Florida Funeral Home that has been delayed several times. It is also the case that  A  Low pressure machine, Low temperature Alkaline Hydrolysis machine at the Queensland centre  (Aquamation) is having  difficulty working according to confirmed sources.

It should be noted that a Cycled Life Or Aquamation machined is  is slated to go into an Ohio Funeral Home this spring.(Confirmed)

There is also true that 2 Eco-Green Green Cremation  System Machines are  suppose to go into  the Maine Funeral Home, Crabiel- Riposta Funeral Home. Of the players involved Eco Green Cremation system and Aquamation have shown us no pictures of their machines. Pictures of the CycledLife, BIOsafe Engineering, Bio Cremation(TM) and Resomation(R) Machines are readily available.

EcoGreen Cremation System does market themselves a turnkey system.

Funeral industry|Funeral News| Funeral Blog by Your Funeral Guy

Enhanced by Zemanta

YourFuneralGuy:Biocremation in Florida 1st or 2nd quarter 2011

3 Jan
St. Petersburg (Florida) by SPOT Satellite
St Petersburg Florida by satellite BOcremation Machine locationImage via Wikipedia

Your Funeral Guy has obtained some information on the installation of the  Biocremation, Resomation(R) Machine in Florida. The installation in all likelihood  will not be to the end of the 1st Quarter or 2nd Quarter 2011.

The machine was first reported to be installed by the End of  September 2010, then by end of 2010. now it seems to be put off again. Matthews International is installing the Machine.

In the meantime there are some changes with the leadership of folks who are installing the machine

St. Petersburg, FL, December 31, 2010 –(PR.com)– Anderson-McQueen Family Tribute Centers is proud to announce John T. McQueen, CFSP, has been named President and CEO.

As a second generation funeral director, John began his career in funeral service working part time

via www.americanconsumernews.com

Funeral Industry|Funeral News|Funeral Blog by Your Funeral Guy

Enhanced by Zemanta
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 107 other followers