Alternative Places to Buy a Casket

When planning a funeral, we don’t think about shopping around. But if you can, it may be worth the effort.

Funeral homes are a logical place to start, and they are required to comply with the Funeral Rule, which requires the funeral provider to give consumers accurate, itemized price information (referred to as a General Price List or GPL) and various other disclosures about funeral goods and services.

Take the time to examine several funeral homes and get detailed pricing for all the services and items you will need. Ask for a General Price List for caskets before you look at them, and don’t let yourself be fooled into buying a casket that will cost you significantly more (or is more than you need) out of feelings of guilt.

It’s important to note that you should be clear that you are shopping around for a funeral service. However, try not to reveal that you are shopping at alternative suppliers for a casket until you have everything in hand, including the General Price List and that funeral home’s pricing.

If you tell a funeral director that you’re going to buy a casket from an outside supplier before you get his or her pricing, the funeral director may drop the price of a casket to keep the sale. Just be careful that the cost of other services didn’t increase. Use your General Price List as a negotiating tool, and check it to determine whether or not you’re really getting a price break.

While a funeral home may be the first place you go for a casket, it’s not the only option. Maybe you feel that the casket choices at the funeral home are priced too high. Or you’re just not comfortable with what options are available. Remember, you’re trying to bury a loved one with dignity; you shouldn’t have to go bankrupt to do so. You can purchase a casket from an outside source – and there are some surprising options.

If you live in a larger metropolitan area, you may be surprised to learn that there are retail casket stores where you can go in, browse the options, and ask questions. I conducted a simple web search for “buying caskets,” and found numerous online sellers offering easy shipping options. All of the websites I checked included the price of each casket, urn, or burial vault. Many of the websites I visited included a price comparison – their price versus the price you may be charged by a funeral home for the same casket.

Other sources for consideration are Amazon, Costco and Walmart. All three offer caskets online with shipping options. Amazon has a wide selection of caskets and urns. Costco sells a modest collection of caskets and urns. Walmart has a very extensive collection of caskets and urns from simple to elegant – they even sell caskets that have sports team logos.

If you are pre-planning, keep in mind that many retailers will not allow you to pre-pay for a casket. In fact, it’s advised that you don’t pre-pay unless you are going to take possession of it. That may be okay if you are pre-planning a funeral for a loved one in a hospice facility and time is short.

It’s also important to note that, in most cases, a funeral home will not let you store the casket in their facility. This means you probably will have to take delivery of the casket at your home, and you will have to store it until it is needed. If you are having a casket delivered to a funeral home, you may be required to be present when the delivery is made.

You may find you are completely happy with what the funeral home is selling, and that’s great. Just take the time to understand your rights. Don’t be misled into believing it is illegal to buy a casket from a supplier other than a funeral home, or that the quality of the casket is not as good. The more educated you are when planning a funeral, the better off you will be. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has a number of resources to help, including a consumer guide.