A guide to planning a funeral.

A consumer guide from the Federal Trade Commission covering the FTC's Funeral Rule. Because funerals can cost thousands of dollars, you should be aware of federal regulations that can help protect you from overpaying. The Funeral Rule, enforced by the Federal Trade Commission, makes it easier for you to choose only those goods and services you want or need and to pay for only those you select.

When a loved one dies, grieving family members and friends often are confronted with dozens of decisions about the funeral — all of which must be made quickly and often under great emotional duress. What kind of funeral should it be? What funeral provider should you use? Should you bury or cremate the body, or donate it to science? What are you legally required to buy? What other arrangements should you plan? And, as callous as it may sound, how much is it all going to cost?Each year, Americans grapple with these and many other questions as they spend billions of dollars arranging more than 2 million funerals for family members and friends. The increasing trend toward pre need planning — when people make funeral arrangements in advance — suggests that many consumers want to compare prices and services so that ultimately, the funeral reflects a wise and well informed purchasing decision, as well as a meaningful one.

A consumer guide to planning funerals. With tips on costs, services and products, cemetery sites, etc.

For everyone who faces the death of a loved one, this practical guide presents options for funerals, memorials, burial, cremation and body donation including ways to make them more meaningful, memorable and valuable. Whether in the midst of grief or pre-planning for a loved one or yourself, this useful guide helps people: examine their significant choices, strip away misconceptions, create opportunities for comparing prices, and plan strategies to avoid costly mistakes.

The Good Funeral Guide is the first ever independent consumer guide to the funeral industry. It is for anyone who: - needs to arrange a funeral for someone now - has sick or elderly relatives or friends and knows that a funeral is imminent - wants to find a good funeral director and have some say in the funeral itself - wants to make future arrangements for their own funeral - would like to learn about deaths and funerals Authoritative, impartial and empowering, it is indispensable for those who don't want a conventional religious ceremony and invaluable for those who do. This is a book we will all need - probably at least twice.