Elderly couple reviewing funeral prices _ Distinct Cremations

Discover how funeral plans work, their key features, and the benefits they offer. A funeral plan can offer peace of mind by covering future funeral costs and sparing your loved ones from financial stress during a difficult time. This guide will help you understand if a funeral plan is right for you.

What is a funeral plan?

A funeral plan lets you arrange and pay for a funeral in advance, whether for yourself or someone else.

Planning a funeral ahead of time means you can choose the type of funeral you would like to have, your preferred funeral plan provider and the payment schedule that would best suit you.

Funeral plans can be paid for either upfront in a single payment or in monthly instalments over a set period of time. This helps relieve your loved ones of financial and planning burdens during a difficult time and ensures your funeral wishes are carried out exactly as you want.

What’s included in a funeral plan?

The specifics of what is included in a funeral plan can vary across different funeral providers.

Here’s a summary of what is included with Distinct Cremations:

  • Essential funeral director services, including assistance with all legal and cremation paperwork
  • Collection by private ambulance and preparation for cremation at our state-of-the-art mortuary facilities
  • Provision of a coffin and a respectful cremation at one of our own crematoriums
  • Ashes are either personally returned within 14 days or respectfully scattered at the crematorium, based on the family's preferences

We offer varied plans including unattended cremation plans, small attended cremation plans and simple funeral plans.

Pen And Paper On Table

How do funeral plans work?

The first steps of setting up a funeral plan are decided by you.

1. Choose the type of funeral you'd like.

The first decision is to select the type of funeral service that best reflects your loved one's wishes. You might want to consider:

  • Do you prefer a burial or cremation?
  • How do funeral costs differ between burial and cremation?
  • Would you like the funeral to be simple or elaborate?

These decisions will influence the overall structure and cost of the funeral, ensuring it aligns with your preferences.

2. Select any additional services

All funeral plans should cover the burial or cremation services but extras like environmentally friendly options or a longer funeral length may come with additional costs. Consider:

  • Are environmentally friendly options important to you?
  • Would you like to include special music, readings, or extended service time?

Adding these can make the service more personalised, but may make it more expensive.

3. Choose a funeral provider

The next step is to select a funeral provider. Here are some key considerations:

  • Make sure the provider is regulated and authorised to sell funeral plans
  • Consider whether the provider specialises in the type of funeral you want
  • Research the provider’s reputation and read reviews from other customers

Distinct Cremations, for example, are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). To hear what our customers say about us, explore our reviews.

4. Decide how you want to pay

When you’ve found a funeral plan you have the choice of paying for it in a single payment or monthly instalments.

Once you’ve set up your funeral plan, your chosen provider has the following obligations.

  • Your money is kept safe.
    Funeral plan providers have to follow rules to keep your funeral plan safe.
  • Your funeral is carried out.
    At the point of death, your funeral will take place according to your wishes and as agreed in your plan.

Benefits of buying a funeral plan

These are some of the reasons why people choose to set up funeral plans.

Clarify your funeral wishes

Couple reviewing finances for funeral plans

A funeral plan ensures that your wishes for the funeral are clearly outlined and carried out as you desire. This removes any uncertainty or disagreements among family members about your preferences, giving you full peace of mind.

Pay in a more convenient way

Woman working out expenses using a calculator, pen and paper with glasses

Monthly payment options offer an affordable way to pay if paying upfront isn’t possible or isn't your preference.

Spend less money on a funeral

couple holding hands at a funeral dressed in black

Once you have the plan set up, the price is locked in and you are protected from any future price rises in funeral costs. This is especially important considering that since 2004, funeral costs have more than doubled from £1,835 to £4,141.[1]

Support your loved ones financially

Woman speaks to daughter about funeral wishes I

A funeral plan removes the financial burden on your family, ensuring they won’t struggle to afford the funeral you want. This allows your loved ones to focus on grieving and supporting each other without the added pressure of managing funeral expenses.

Save your loved ones stress

Wooden coffin with a bouquet of funeral flowers laid on top

Planning ahead means your loved ones won't have the emotional strain of organising a funeral while they are mourning. All the details will be taken care of according to your plan.

Save based on where you live

Funeral garden distinct cremations

If you live in an expensive area, a nationwide plan could offer a cheaper funeral than it would cost to arrange one locally.

[1] Funeral costs were £1,835 in 2004 and £4,141 in 2023, SunLife Cost of Dying Report 2024, sunlife.co.uk/funeral-costs

Always check the suitability of any plan

Once you've chosen a plan you may not be able to change the type of funeral you have. Be sure of your preferences at the point you set one up and make sure everything you want is included so carrying out your wishes is possible.

UK funeral plans are most likely not suitable if you’re planning to move abroad as they won’t cover repatriation or carrying out your funeral in a different country.

Our plans

At Distinct Cremations, our funeral plans offer either attended or unattended funerals.

See more information about our Unattended Direct Cremation Plan or our Small Attended Cremation Plans below or alternatively you can view our Simple Funeral Plan offering a full length celebrant-led cremation funeral.

For additional pricing information and a full list of our optional extras, please see our price list.

Unattended Direct Cremation Plan

From £1,699 or £19.44* per month

Our Unattended Direct Cremation Plan is a great choice for those looking for a simple, low-cost unattended cremation without a funeral ceremony.

With our Unattended Direct Cremation Plan, the cremation takes place with no service or mourners present at our high-quality crematoria where dignified care is guaranteed.

View our Unattended Direct Cremation Plan * Price advertised is for a 50 year old paying over a 10 year period. Total cost is £2,332.80 and includes administration fees.

Small Attended Cremation Plans

From £2,099 or £25.23** per month

Our Small Attended Cremation Plans offer a private funeral where the number of people attending is limited to a small gathering of friends and family.

With our Small Attended Cremation Plans, you can have up to 8 people attending a 10 minute service or up to 20 people and a 20 minute service.

View our Small Attended Cremation Plans ** Price advertised is for a 50 year old paying over a 10 year period. Total cost is £3,027.60 and includes administration fees.

How do you pay for a plan?

Woman Researching Funeral Plans

Funeral plans are a popular option for paying for a funeral in advance. In fact, 37% of people who decide to set money aside for their own funeral do so by taking out a funeral plan.[2]

The flexibility in payment options is one of the benefits that make funeral plans a popular choice. Here are the different ways you can pay for a funeral plan:

  • Single payment - Pay the full amount upfront for immediate peace of mind and no further payments.
  • 1-year plan - Spread the cost over 12 months, making it easier to manage within a shorter time frame.
  • 5-year plan - Pay in instalments over five years, balancing affordability and financial planning.
  • 10-year plan - Opt for a decade-long payment plan, minimising monthly payments and fitting comfortably into long-term budgeting.

[2] In 2023, 37% of people who made provisions to pay for their own funeral took out a funeral plan. (SunLife Cost of Dying Report 2024, sunlife.co.uk/funeral-costs)

Important

Don’t take out a plan if you think you won’t be able to afford the monthly payments. If you miss too many payments your plan will be cancelled and you could lose your money.

Get in touch

Interested in our low cost cremation plans?

We're happy to answer any questions you may have about our funeral plans over the phone, or you can request a free guide for details about what we offer. If you've decided a funeral plan is right for you, you can also view our products and take out a plan online.

Have a chat with us

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Want to talk through our options? If you have questions or would like some in-person support we’re just a call away.

Call us on 01543 212997

Get a free guide

Sue bench

Need some time to digest the details? You can download a PDF of our guide online or get a printed copy posted out.

Get our guide

Set up a plan online

Woman Buying Funeral Plan On Computer

If you’re happy that one of our plans is exactly what you’re looking for, you can get everything set up yourself online.

View our funeral plans

Sharing your wishes

When you set up a funeral plan, share the details of it with your partner, children, friends or anyone else who is your next of kin or the executor of your estate. If no one knows about your plan, it won't be used which would be a waste of your money.

You can follow these steps to ensure your funeral goes ahead according to your plan and you're aware of your loved ones' plans too.

  • Give your funeral provider the details of the person who will be speaking to them to set your funeral arrangements in motion.
  • Communicate your wishes and the details of your plan with your loved ones.
  • Keep your funeral documents somewhere safe and easy to find.
  • Speak to relatives and friends to establish whether or not they've taken out any funeral plans themselves.

Purple Flowers In Field

Setting up a funeral plan for someone else

Funeral plans can also be bought for other people, for example your parent or your spouse.

Want to set up a plan for someone else?

If your loved one needs care, arranging funeral cover for them gives you peace of mind that they will be looked after by the plan provider you’ve chosen should they die while you are away or otherwise unavailable.

They don't need to know that you've taken out a funeral plan for them if you think talking about their death would upset them. But you will need financial power of attorney if you want to pay for someone else's plan with their money.

How to get a funeral plan for someone else

Other useful resources

The next step in choosing a funeral plan is deciding on a funeral type. Or if you already know you want a simple cremation funeral, you can go ahead and set up a plan with us.

Choose a funeral plan

Couple reviewing funeral plan options

Now you know what a funeral plan is in more detail, find out some steps you can take to find the right funeral plan product for you.

How to choose a funeral plan

Cremation or burial

Wooden coffin with a bouquet of funeral flowers laid on top

Still undecided about which type of funeral you would like? See the ways cremation and burial funerals differ to help you make up your mind.

Find out about cremation and burial

Set up a funeral plan

Sue Arrange

Like the look of our plans? You can set up our Unattended Direct Cremation Plan or Intimate Cremation Plan either over the phone or online.

View our funeral plans

We offer the highest level of support, but don't take our word for it

Below are a selection of reviews from those who followed their instinct with Distinct and chose to buy a funeral with us.

4.9/5
Based on 971 reviews Feefo Logo Feefo Gold 2024
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Garrie Parker, on Feefo 7 Oct 2024
Very helpful, professional service, would recommend
Anonymous, on Feefo 7 Oct 2024
We used Distinct Cremations when a local provider asked us to call back the following day as they were too busy! Distinct could not be faulted from initial contact throughout the whole procedure leading up to the cremation and beyond. We have no hesitation in recommending this company, in fact we have already spread the word to friends and family.
Anonymous, on Feefo 7 Oct 2024
exactly what we wanted, plan bought and paid for easy to use form and very helpful telephone staff
Peter William Simmonds, on Feefo 5 Oct 2024
On being left to set the plan into motion after the death of my sister district cremations talked me through every step thay were considerate and professional until the end
Maureen Harrison, on Google 2 Oct 2024
Everything was so simple and efficient. The forms were easy to do no problems
Anonymous, on Feefo 1 Oct 2024
Two plans purchased, complicated situation yet staff accommodated our special needs. Brilliant service. Our minds at rest regarding end of life details. Couldn't have wished for more genuine interactions, understanding and reassurance.
Glen Montague, on TrustPilot 1 Oct 2024
Nobody likes to deal with things like funerals etc but all i can say is how wonderful everybody was at Distinct Cremations.Nothing was too much trouble,everything was explained clearly and in a very professional manner,most of all just great people to deal with.
Toni Stevens, on Google 29 Sep 2024
During this difficult time the staff at Distinct Cremations have been exemplary. They provided an immediate considerate service, kept me well updated at every point. I had a problem with the doctor’s certificate and they even contacted the surgery on my behalf multiple times to resolve the issue. The ashes were returned promptly with lots of notice by a member of their own team. Honestly I can’t recommend them enough, they served my dad with dignity.
4.9/5
Based on 971 reviews
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Read all our reviews

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