Taking out a prepaid funeral plan is a big decision and could be an important step in planning ahead for your future. You may be faced with many questions, such as how safe prepaid funeral plans are and whether your money is protected. You may also be unsure on how to choose the right plan for you. Understanding how prepaid funeral plans work and how the industry is regulated may aid you in your decision. Read on to find out more.

What is a prepaid funeral plan?

Prepaid funeral plans allow you to plan out and pay for your funeral in advance of your death, providing you and your family with the peace of mind that everything is taken care of. Whilst not every cost is included, prepaid funeral plans allow you to pay for the majority of your funeral at today’s prices. With the price of funerals rising annually,¹ securing some of your funeral costs could work out as a significant saving in the long run.

In addition to this, prepaid funeral plans let you document your funeral wishes. You can add in as much detail as you want in to your plan, having everything documented for when the time comes. Your family won’t be left wondering about what you wanted, giving them peace of mind and easing some of the burden.

1 Sun Life Cost of Dying Report 2025

How does a prepaid funeral plan work?

Prepaid funeral plans will all work slightly differently, but the main components are fundamentally the same. You’ll work with a funeral plan provider to plan out your funeral before choosing your payment option.

At Dillamore, we believe that funerals are as individual as the person who has died, so we offer a flexible funeral plan that is tailored entirely to your wishes. The plan is called the Independent Way and it’s provided by one of the UK’s largest funeral plan providers, Golden Charter.²

For anyone choosing to take a prepaid funeral plan out with us, we’ll work closely with you as arrangements are made, creating a completely bespoke funeral package. Everything from your wishes for the funeral through to the price you pay and how you pay is decided by you, with us supporting you every step of the way. This ensures you can have the funeral of your wishes at a price you can afford. Not every plan provides this level of flexibility.

Everything is then kept on file (you’ll also receive plan documents pack with all the  nformation about your plan,) until after your death, when we’ll liaise with your family members to put everything in to place.

How safe are prepaid funeral plans?

With the Independent Way plan, your money will be transferred and held in the Golden Charter Trust after Golden Charter deduct their arrangement fee. The Golden Charter Trust is operated by a Board of Trustees, completely independent of Golden Charter. Their role is to hold your payments and ensure that the funeral director services in your plan can be paid for at the time they are required – however far into the future that may be. If you would like further information regarding the Trust, please contact Golden Charter or visit  www.goldenchartertrust.co.uk.

Golden Charter funeral plan customers benefit from the additional protection of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).

The FSCS exists to protect the customers of financial services firms that go out of business and are unable to fulfil the product or service purchased (or are likely to be unable to). Where this happens, the FSCS steps in to pay compensation to affected customers. The FSCS is independent from, but accountable to, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which became the regulator of the funeral plan sector in July 2022.

In the unlikely event that the Golden Charter Trust ceased to exist, all customers’ payments would be covered by the FSCS. This means customers could be entitled to compensation subject to FSCS limits (currently £85,000 per individual plan holder with some exceptions). Alternatively, the FSCS could arrange for a new ‘like-for-like’ plan to be set up through another authorised funeral plan provider.

2.Based on Golden Charter analysis and independent research of funeral plan market size as at May 2024.

What’s included and not included in a prepaid funeral plan?

If you choose to take out a Golden Charter funeral plan with Dillamore, any costs associated with the funeral director’s services will be covered in full within the plan. Certain third-party costs are not covered in full, however you are able to make financial contributions towards them. This is because third-party costs are provided by external suppliers so are out of the funeral director’s financial control.

Funeral Director’s Services
(these are guaranteed in your plan)

  • The professional services of the funeral director
  • Arranging a cremation or burial
  • Conveyance from the place of death
  • The care of the deceased
  • Preparations and chapel visits
  • Funeral vehicles
  • A coffin or casket

Third Party Services
(these are not guaranteed in your plan, but you can make contributions towards them)

  • Church fee
  • Crematorium fee
  • Burial fee
  • Minister or officiant fees
  • Organist or live musician
  • Order of service
  • Newspaper announcements / online notices
  • Floral displays

Ready to find out more?

If you would like to chat with us about the Independent Way plan, our team will be happy to answer any questions and give you all the information you need. We take a no-obligation approach and will never pressure you to take out a plan with us. We understand it’s an important decision, and something that can’t be rushed.

You can call us on 01525 372210, or use our contact form to send us an email. We also have a free downloadable prepaid funeral plan guide that will give you all the information you need to get you started.