Thursday, 30 July 2020
When the time comes to hold a funeral, life is often in chaos. Lots of decisions need to be made, often many people are involved and a lot of information is required in a short space of time.
Pre-planning the funeral is a simple process and involves meeting with us to record your personal and funeral preferences and directions. There is no charge to pre-plan a funeral, however, if you wish, as well as making the funeral arrangements in advance, you can choose to pre-pay your funeral expenses.
Prepaying your funeral can be incredibly empowering and will also provide a great deal of peace of mind, taking the emotional stress of your family, locking in your funeral costs at today’s price, and allowing you to plan things your way. Then you can relax, knowing your money is held safely in a trust while you get on with enjoying life to the full.
We provide a Guaranteed Fixed-price funeral plan, called Guardian Plan, which ensures that you pay at today’s prices, with no more to pay in the future, ever.
Have a look in some benefits of preplanning and prepaying a funeral.
1. Avoid rising costs
You don’t want your loved ones to be financially burdened in such a tough time. Prepaying your funeral will ensure you are guaranteed the service you want, without looking at a mountain of debt after the funeral is all said and done.
Those you leave behind can spend the days after your death reminiscing about the good times, celebrating your life and grieving effectively, without the heavy burden of wondering how they are going to pay for your funeral.
2. Plan the funeral you want
You probably have some thoughts about how you want your family and friends to remember you. One of the best ways to make sure your wishes are respected is to plan your own funeral, that way you can have a say in the music, the theme, the venue and so on. It is still important to involve your family and friends in planning as funerals are a very important part in grieving.
3. No health checks
Because a funeral plan is not insurance, there is no need for lengthy forms or health checks.
The process is generally very simple and your chosen funeral director will be able to walk you through the process and answer any questions you have along the way.
4. Pay now or in instalments
Guardian Plan understand that paying the lump sum of a funeral can be hard at the best of times. Because of this, they offer flexible payment terms that allow you to pay off your funeral over a matter of months or even years. Once the funeral has been paid for in full, there are no further ongoing payments. Best of all, paying like this is interest-free and can be set up to automatically debit so you never have to worry about missing a payment.
So, now, what to include in your funeral plan to make it beneficial for your family?
- A Professional Fee is guidance to you now as you plan ahead and later for your loved ones, explaining your wishes and assisting with any final details, such as placing the newspaper notices, ordering flowers and any other details required.
- Attendance of experienced funeral directors at the funeral ceremony venue and crematorium or graveside.
- Transfer of the deceased.
- Mortuary care of the loved one prior to the funeral including preparation for viewings as required.
- Provision of your selected Casket or Coffin.
- All necessary documentation for your burial or cremation.
- Cremation Fees and Cremation Certificate (at nominated crematoriums only).
- Provision of the Hearse for the ceremony.
- Other items you can also include and prepaid: Newspaper notices, Flowers, Certified Death Certificate, Clergy or Celebrant fees, Order of Service leaflets, Photo Tributes etc.
- A travel protection plan, that covers the costs of transportation of the deceased person from anywhere in Australia back to the funeral home, so the service can be provided as you intended.
Access our website to find out some frequently asked questions about the Guardian Plan: https://ahfunerals.com.au/planning-ahead/pre-payment-of-funeral-expenses/