The Funeral Rule: Your Right to Funeral Pricing Info

Did you know? … In the US if you call a funeral home they are required to give you pricing over the phone! You do NOT have to go in person, you don’t even have to share your contact information. It’s true, and it’s federally mandated. In 1984 (amended in 1994), the Federal Trade Commission introduced the “Funeral Rule”  (it was amended in 1994!).

“You must give consumers who telephone your place of business and ask about your prices or offerings accurate information from your General Price List, Casket Price List, and Outer Burial Container Price List. You also must answer any other questions about your offerings and prices with any readily available information that reasonably answers the question.”(17)

In other good news, they can’t (like many other types of businesses looking to sell you things, or add you to mailing or advertising lists) request your name or contact information before providing that information. The guidelines go on to specifically state:

Note: You cannot require callers to give their names, addresses, or phone numbers before you give them the requested information. You can ask callers to identify themselves, but you still must answer their questions even if they refuse to do so. You cannot require consumers to come to the funeral home in person to get price information.

Handling Funeral arrangements is hard enough, now you know that you have protections against any sales tactics or struggles in making a really difficult phone call, thanks to the FTC.

Check out the Code of Federal Regulations page on the Funeral Rule for even more on the other protections offered by the Funeral Rule!