How to Choose the Right Funeral Home Seven Considerations Consideration oneEstimate attendance. Calculate how many people you expect to attend. Make sure you have a good estimate before you choose the funeral home and reception site and that the facility will be large enough to accommodate your gathering. Consideration two Consider location. Just because your loved one died away from home it doesn’t mean the funeral or burial needs to occur away from home. Bodies or ashes (cremains) are often transported for a funeral gathering or burial. Funeral homes frequently arrange for the transport of bodies by air or car for services in another city, state or country. Pick a funeral home in a location convenient for survivors to gather for the ceremony or in a location close to the place of burial. You will need to arrange transportation with two funeral homes one to pick the body up and transport it and a second funeral home to receive the body. If cremation is desired, you may hire a funeral home or crematory to cremate the body and then place the ashes (cremains) in a fly-safe container for travel by air or simply drive the cremains to the location for the ceremony. This is a much less expensive option than transporting a whole body. Consideration three Compare facilities. If you’re planning on using the funeral home as the location for the ceremony and reception, look carefully at your options. There’s a huge variety in what funeral homes offer. Look at their websites for descriptions and pictures of their facilities. Unfortunately, many funeral homes don’t have comprehensive websites, so you will probably need to make phone calls for more information. Before booking a service, visit the funeral home and tour the facilities. Here are some things to consider: Consideration four Compare Price. Prices vary. Call around. If you ask, funeral directors must give you pricing information on the phone. This makes comparing prices between multiple providers much easier. The funeral home cannot demand your name, address or phone number before giving you the prices. The Federal Trade Commission's Funeral Rule requires all funeral directors to give consumers accurate, itemized price information and various other disclosures about both funeral goods and services. Funeral directors are required to provided the itemized pricing for individual products in person and if asked also over the phone. Know what you’re buying. Ask what services are included in the fee. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Consideration five Consider Cultural and Religious Practices. Most funeral homes will accommodate any culture or religion, although, some specialize in a particular religious or cultural practice. Ask to make sure your religious and culture practices will be followed at the funeral home. Consideration six Read Reviews. There are several websi... |
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