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The funeral rule

When planning a funeral, either your own or someone else's, you'll need to begin by learning about the applicable regulations. Funerals -- be they earth burials or cremations -- fall under the jurisdiction of the Federal Trade Commission, which enforces The Funeral Rule.

All funeral providers must comply with the Funeral Rule when assisting consumers in making pre-need plans or arrangements after a death. A funeral provider is defined by the FTC as one who sells, or offers to sell, both funeral goods and funeral services to the public.

Consumers should note that those who sell only funeral goods, such as caskets, but not funeral services, are not bound by the Rule.

The Funeral Rule is designed to protect consumers by specifying disclosure practices and holding funeral providers to an ethical standard.

It requires, among other provisions, that funeral providers give written, itemized price information concerning funeral goods and services to consumers, or supply such information over the phone, if requested. This information is referred to as a general price list (GPL).

The Funeral Rule asserts that consumers have the right to freely choose funeral goods and services, within certain regulated parameters. If any state or local laws apply to an aspect of the funeral arrangements, the funeral home must refer to them specifically on the GPL.

While many funeral providers offer 'funeral packages', you are entitled to buy goods and services individually.

A funeral provider may not make funeral services conditional upon the purchase of funeral goods, and may not charge a fee for handling -- or refuse to handle -- merchandise, such as a casket or cremation urn, bought elsewhere.

You should be aware that even the most substantial of caskets doesn't appreciably slow the decomposition of the body it contains, even though it may be encased within a grave vault or protected by a liner, or resting within a mausoleum. Beware of any claims to the contrary.

At its website (www.ftc.gov), the Federal Trade Commission offers an excellent consumer guide to funerals which, in addition to outlining general industry practices, explains such details as embalming, buying a casket, burial vaults and grave liners, and purchasing a cemetery plot. The guide can be found at: www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/services/funeral.htm.