• March 29, 2024
 Could your clients be eligible to receive funeral payments?

Could your clients be eligible to receive funeral payments?

When drafting or even amending a will for your clients, funeral planning is one of the integral areas that needs careful preparation. Helping to reduce the burden on family members or loved ones left behind should be a key objective.

Funeral payments supplied by the Government could be available to your clients, to assist with paying for the cost of a funeral. The expenses covered can include:

  • burial fees and exclusive rights to burial in a particular plot
  • cremation fees, including the cost of the doctor’s certificate
  • up to £700 for funeral expenses, e.g. funeral director’s fees, flowers, coffin
  • travel to arrange or go to the funeral
  • the costs for moving the body within the UK – but only for the part of the journey that’s over 50 miles

The payments, which are available to those below a specified income threshold, are repayable by the assets of the estate, if any, and cannot be used for anything already covered by a funeral plan.

A claim for funeral payments must be made within three months of the funeral and is subject to eligibility criteria, including the relationship to the deceased and being in receipt of certain benefits. If successful, the money is paid either directly to the Funeral Director, or the person making the claim.

If the claim is unsuccessful, there may be other ways to assist in paying for the funeral such as using money from the deceased bank account.

To find out more about funeral payments and eligibility visit: https://www.gov.uk/funeral-payments/overview

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