The FTC Funeral Rule: Your Rights When Buying a Funeral

The FTC Funeral Rule is a federal rule that lets you buy only the funeral goods and services you want and see what each one costs before you decide. It has been in effect since April 30, 1984, and was revised in 1994. Funeral homes must give prices by phone, hand you an itemized price list to keep, accept a casket you bought elsewhere, and never claim that a law requires something it doesn't.

What is the Funeral Rule?

The Funeral Rule is Part 453 of Title 16 of the Code of Federal Regulations, enforced by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). It treats certain sales practices as unfair or deceptive and tells funeral providers what they must disclose to avoid them.

The rule does not set prices or tell you what to buy. Its job is to make prices visible and to stop providers from bundling items, charging for things you didn't choose, or misstating the law. The FTC says it applies whether you arrange a funeral when a death occurs or in advance.

Who has to follow it?

The rule covers "funeral providers," defined as any person or business that sells or offers to sell both funeral goods and funeral services to the public. The FTC says you don't need to be a licensed funeral home. A cemetery or crematory that markets both goods and services can be a funeral provider too.

The rule does not cover third-party sellers such as casket stores and monument dealers, or cemeteries with no on-site funeral home. If you arranged a prepaid plan, the rule applies again when the family later asks about goods or services, changes the plan, or has to pay more.

What rights does the Funeral Rule give you?

According to the FTC, you have the right to:

• Buy only what you want. You can buy goods (such as a casket) and services (such as embalming or a memorial service) separately. You don't have to accept a package that includes items you don't want.
• Get prices by phone. Funeral directors must give price information by phone if you ask. You don't have to give your name, address or phone number first.
• Get a General Price List to keep. The home must hand you a printed or typed list of every item and service it offers, with prices, when you start discussing arrangements in person.
• See casket and outer burial container prices first. If those prices aren't on the General Price List, you must be able to read separate price lists before you see the products.
• Get an itemized written statement. Right after you make arrangements, and before you pay, the home must list every good and service you selected, each price, and the total.
• Learn about any claimed legal requirement. If the home says a law, cemetery or crematory requires you to buy something, it must explain that in writing on your statement.
• Use an alternative container for cremation. The FTC says no state or local law requires a casket for cremation, and a home that offers cremation must make an alternative container available.
• Use a casket or urn from elsewhere. The home cannot refuse it, charge a fee for handling it, or require you to be there when it arrives.
• Skip embalming. No state requires routine embalming for every death, and direct cremation and immediate burial need no preservation. See whether embalming is required by law.

What price lists and documents should you get?

The GPL must say that you may choose only the items you want. It must also say that embalming is not required by law except in certain special cases, and that an alternative container can be used for a direct cremation. Our guide to the General Price List covers each line and how to compare homes.

What can a funeral home not say or charge?

The rule lists specific false claims and practices:

• It cannot say the law requires embalming when it doesn't, or that embalming is needed for direct cremation or immediate burial.
• It cannot say a casket is required for direct cremation.
• It cannot say a grave liner or vault is required by state law or by a cemetery when that isn't true. The FTC says outer burial containers are not required by state law anywhere in the US, though many cemeteries require one so the grave doesn't sink.
• It cannot claim that a casket or other goods will delay natural decomposition for a long time or indefinitely, or that goods protect the body when they don't.
• It cannot make you buy one item in order to buy another, or charge a fee as a condition of providing goods or services other than the basic services fee.
• It must tell you if it adds a charge on top of third-party "cash advance" items, such as flowers or obituary notices.

The basic services fee covers the funeral director's and staff's work in arranging the funeral. It is the only fee the rule lets a home make non-declinable, unless another law requires a fee. A second mandatory fee, such as a casket handling fee, breaks the rule. See funeral home fees explained for what each line covers.

What does the rule not do?

• It doesn't cap prices. Prices for the same service can differ a lot between homes, which is why the rule is built around comparison shopping. See how to negotiate funeral prices.
• It doesn't currently require online prices. The FTC says many homes mail their lists and some post them online, but there is no federal requirement to do so.
• It doesn't cover cemeteries that sell only plots or other goods, or outside sellers. Cemetery rules come from state law and the cemetery's own regulations.
• It doesn't say when a funeral home must release remains. That depends on state law and your contract. See our guide to a funeral home holding a body.
• It doesn't set the protections for money you prepay. Those come from state law, which varies. See pre-paid funeral plans.

Is the Funeral Rule changing?

Not yet. The rule's text dates from 1994. In November 2022 the FTC published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking asking whether to amend it, and it held a public workshop on September 7, 2023. The workshop looked at whether and how providers should be required to give price lists online or electronically, and at how the rule treats newer options such as alkaline hydrolysis and natural organic reduction. As of this update we found no amended rule, so the requirements in this guide are the ones we could confirm. Check the FTC's site for any change.

How is the rule enforced?

The FTC says a funeral provider that breaks the rule may face civil penalties. The FTC's business guidance lists up to $53,088 per violation. The maximum is adjusted for inflation, so the current figure may be higher; the FTC's 2024 press release cited $51,744.

In 2023, FTC investigators made undercover phone calls to more than 250 funeral homes. Staff found that 39 had violated the rule. On 38 of those calls, the home either refused to answer price questions or gave inconsistent prices for identical services, and one home falsely said local health code required embalming. The FTC sent warning letters to the 39 homes in January 2024.

A state can also ask the FTC for an exemption from the rule if its own requirements protect consumers as well or better. In that case the state's law applies in place of the federal rule, as the FTC decides.

What if a funeral home breaks the rule?

1. Write it down. Record the date, the name of the person you spoke to and what they said. Keep every price list and statement you were given.
2. Raise it with the funeral home first, in writing if you can, and say what you want fixed.
3. Report it. The FTC takes reports at reportfraud.ftc.gov or 1-877-382-4357. You can also complain to your state's funeral board or attorney general. Our guide to funeral consumer rights explains where complaints go and what to expect.
4. Change homes if you need to. Many families switch before the funeral. See switching funeral directors.

What to do next

1. Phone two or three funeral homes and ask for their prices before you visit. Our list of questions to ask a funeral director can help.
2. Ask for each home's General Price List by email or in person, and keep it.
3. Check the itemized statement against the price list before you sign or pay.
4. If you want a casket or urn from another seller, tell the home early. See buying a casket online.