The charity Age Concern has long recognised the benefits of a funeral pre-payment plan for those people, mainly elderly, who wish to settle the costs of their funeral themselves. The Age Concern plan is poor value for price, disbursements and choice of funeral director' Potential purchasers might think it reasonable to assume that the Age Concern brand must be the best value available, thus removing the need to 'shop around' for this most sensitive of services, but they would be wrong. In contrast to the Age Concern plan, Funeral Planning Services administers over 100 plans offered by local funeral directors across the country, the funds for which are kept in Funeral Planning Trust until required. Treatment of Disbursements Around a quarter of the cost of a funeral is made up of 'disbursements' paid by the funeral director to other parties, such as the crematorium or cemetery fee, doctors' fees for a cremation certificate and the minister's fee.
Disbursement costs vary from one area to another, so a locally-priced plan is more relevant.
By purchasing a funeral pre-payment plan, as distinct from a conventional insurance policy, customers are entering into a contract with the funeral director. With the Age Concern plan the funeral director will normally be the nearest branch of the SCI corporation through its other English subsidiary, Family Funeral Directors Limited - the name and location not usually being disclosed until after the plan is paid for. Ownership Despite the Age Concern branding, only 25 per cent of the company established to promote the Age Concern Funeral Plan is owned by the Age Concern charity, through its trading subsidiary Age Concern Enterprises Limited. The majority is owned by the Texas-based SCI corporation through its English subsidiary Funeral Plans Limited. I am aware that most charities engage in trading activities, but not ones that are at variance with their charitable activities.