Compare funeral plans

With most prepaid plans the cover can be adapted for either a burial or cremation funeral and the Dignity funeral plan is no exception. In fact if you are unsure whether you prefer a cremation or burial but just feel you want to put the funds in place to pay for the funeral, then Dignity offer an ‘undecided’ option, so you can choose at a later date or leave the decision to your family if you prefer.

The first point to note about a burial plan is that no funeral planning company will pay for your plot, which could add a considerable cost to your funeral arrangements, typically between £500 to over £1,500 depending on where you live.

The Dignity Plan offers flexibility with one of the largest allowances of £1,220 towards your burial costs, which can be used towards any aspect of the fees, including the cost of the plot. In addition, unlike many other providers, if there is any money left over from the allowance, this will be returned to your estate.

You don't have to purchase your plot at the same time as taking out the funeral plan, you can either do it at a later date or leave this to your family to sort out when the time comes (using the money left from the allowance to help with the cost).

If you are looking for a funeral plan and you live in Spain, Portugal, Cyprus and the Canaries, or you have a second home in any of these countries, then we have a European funeral plan that will provide cover for arranging a funeral either there, or here in the UK.

Quite simply if you think some time on the future you may choose to move to, or buy a second home abroad, then this plan will give you the flexibility, no matter whether you are drinking sangria in Spain or tea in Torquay.

Research carried out by SunLife shows average funeral costs in the UK at *£4,184; this figure does not include flowers, memorials, wakes, notices or probate fees. To see the impact inflation could have on the average cost of a funeral in years to come if costs continue to rise at a similar rate, take a look at our funeral calculator.

Yes, we offer national coverage throughout the UK, so it doesn’t matter where you live – there will always be a funeral director local to you..

A funeral Plan freezes your costs at today’s prices so there will be nothing more to pay for the guaranteed services included, no matter when it is in the future, be it 20 or even 30 years time. The only consideration is if you have chosen a ‘contribution style’ funeral plan, in which case there may be more to pay for the cremation and minister’s fees; this all depends on how much these costs have increased compared to the allowance included in your plan.

When the time comes, instead of your family receiving a cash lump sum, your plan provider will pay the funeral director directly so your family won’t have the worry. There will be nothing more to pay for the funeral services that are guaranteed in the plan.    

An over 50 life insurance plan is a completely different type of policy that pays out a cash sum that families often use to help pay for funeral costs. This is why when people talk about Funeral Insurance, they often get confused between a funeral plan and an over 50s plan.

An over 50 life insurance plan as mentioned pays out a cash sum when you die that can be used to help with funeral costs, pay outstanding bills or left as a gift to family members. If it is used to help pay for the funeral, then the family will still have to make the arrangements and as inflation reduces the cash sum paid out over time, there could be more for them to pay – it all depends on the cash sum paid out versus funeral costs at that time.

A funeral plan on the other hand freezes your funeral costs at today’s prices so guarantees your family will never have anything more to pay for the services included.

The plan provider will arrange for the services of a funeral director who is in your area.

All funeral insurance plans provided by national funeral planning companies are flexible and portable, so if you move, the plan moves with you. You simply contact your funeral planning company to let them know your new address and they will move the plan to a funeral director local to your new home.

Whilst some plan providers like Dignity do not charge for this service, please be aware that some providers, like Golden Charter for example do not guarantee that you won't have more to pay, it all depends on the costs in your new area.

Yes, you may wish to add your “wishes” to the plan so that your next of kin knows what you want when the time comes, for example, music, hymns, reception or you can fully bespoke a plan.

We help you compare funeral insurance UK wide providing information, guides and funeral plan reviews so you can be fully informed prior to making your decision. Based on our comparisons, we have chosen to recommend Dignity as we believe that they offer excellent value for money, guaranteeing not only the cost of a funeral director but also the cremation and ministers fees at today's prices.

The following providers are all FPA regulated but only offer a contribution towards 3rd party costs:

• Perfect Choice
• Golden Charter
• Choice
• Avalon
• Open 
• Safe Hands

Please note that Saga do not provide pre-paid funeral plans and Age UK and Post Office plans are provided by Dignity.

Pride Planning & Safe Hands Funeral Plans are not regulated by the Funeral Planning Authority. 

The Funeral Planning Authority or FPA as they are also referred to are the regulatory body for funeral plans, their role being to ensure registered members comply with their strictest of rules and strict code of practise as to the service you receive and how your money is held.

In order to register with the Funeral Planning authority, plan providers must demonstrate they comply with these rules; something they have to do on an ongoing basis as they have to re-register annually.

Yes you can buy funeral insurance for someone else. You will be able to specify this when applying for the plan by adding yourself as plan representative. As the plan purchaser and representative, all correspondence will be sent directly to you if you wish.

No you don’t. Your application will be accepted regardless of your state of health.

The Dignity funeral plan is available to anyone over the age of 40 however there are other under 50 funeral plans that are suitable for anyone over the age of 18.

The top 10 funeral plan providers are registered with and regulated by the Funeral Planning Authority. Beyond that it really depends on your personal requirements and budget.

For example if you are concerned about budget and looking for a low cost option, then you’d be wanting to consider the top 10 cheapest funeral plans rather than perhaps the top 10 most comprehensive plans.

The main consideration is that the company is FPA regulated and you fully understand how the plan works and what is and isn’t included which is where our comparisons and reviews will help.

Yes, we can arrange this for you.

The costs will depend on your requirements, as some people will just require an eco-friendly coffin whereas others prefer a fully carbon neutral service. Green funeral plans are increasing in popularity but generally are more expensive.

• Is the funeral plan provider regulated by the Funeral Planning Authority?
• Are my funeral directors costs guaranteed?
• Are the cremation fees guaranteed at today's prices - only Dignity and Co op funeral plans currently offer this.
• If paying monthly, how much extra will I pay in additional charges or interest
• How is my money stored and how safe is it?

There are a few other websites that allow you to compare funeral plans uk wide, but the large comparison sites; Go Compare, Moneysupermarket, Confused, Money and Martin Lewis' Moneysavingexpert as of yet are not providing this service.Over50choices offers the widest funeral plans comparison service with independent reviews to help you make an informed decision.

Don’t forget, if you are looking at funeral insurance you may also want to compare over 50 life insurance which many people use to help with funeral costs.

As an independent company we believe that the Dignity funeral plan offers security and reassurance for the family with no hidden costs.

Of course we recognise that other plan providers that are regulated by the Funeral Planning Authority are worth considering, particularly if you have a preferred funeral director that only accepts one funeral planning company's plans.

Our advice is to use our funeral plans comparison table, read our reviews or if you prefer, ask us for advice on how the best funeral plans compare so you can choose one that fully suits your needs

Dignity also provide plans for Age UK and the Post Office, in addition to other leading brands, such as the Skipton Building Society.

Yes, most funeral planning companies offer payments over 12 months at no extra cost and then instalment options of up to 25 years depending on your age. Understandably most funeral plan providers will have a threshold by which the payments should be complete.

If anything were to happen to you before you have completed your instalments, then the money you have paid into the plan would go towards the funeral costs and the family would just need to pay the balance, based on the original amount agreed.

Therefore although you pay more for an instalment plan, it can still save money as you are freezing your costs at today’s prices therefore avoiding future inflation. Also your family will have the money you have paid into the plan up to that point to help with the funeral costs.

Defaqto is an independent financial information business. They collect product data from the whole of market and make it comparable to help consumers, like you, make better decisions. They are not customer reviews, in our case we ask Trustpilot to independently ask customers for these.

They have reviewed the funeral plan market in the UK and rated funeral plans on a scale of 1 to 5 based on quality and comprehensiveness of the features and benefits of each plan.

A 4 or 5 Star Rating indicates that a product represents one of the best quality offerings in the market. A 1 Star Rating indicates a basic plan with a low level of features and benefits.

The Dignity Diamond Plan was only 1 of 5 funeral plans that was awarded 5 Stars. The others were; AgeUK Rowan Plan, Co-op Funeralcare Gold Plan, Lincolnshire Co-op Funeral Services Lincoln Plan and Post Office Money Premium Plan.

The cheapest funeral plan you can have is a direct cremation, which costs between £1,300 to £1,800.

A direct cremation is a cremation but without a funeral service - there are no mourners in attendance. This is a more affordable and cheaper option than a traditional funeral, although the majority of people choosing this low cost option do so as they prefer a simple no frills option without the fuss of family and friends attending.

If you prefer a more traditional plan, many providers now offer budget funeral plans that have certain restrictions such as the time of the funeral service. So you can take advantage of the benefits of a prepaid plan whilst sticking to a budget. 

If you die whilst abroad your repatriation cover on your travel insurance if you have it would get you back home and then the funeral director will provide the funeral services as outlined in your prepaid plan.

Alternatively if the family decide to have the funeral abroad, they can cancel the plan and receive a full refund minus the cancellation fee.