You know how money is a taboo topic and here at Savvy Scot we try out best to demystify it and talk openly about it? Well today we go even further into taboo topics: death. And to make things better, we’re mixing the two to talk about the cost of funerals. Heavy, I know, but necessary, since according to SunLife, the average cost of a funeral is over £3,600, while the cost of dying, including including the memorial, death notices, flowers and wake expenses, as well as estate administrators, averages over £8,000. Dying sure isn’t cheap. And if you are not prepared, you can put your family in a very tough financial situation. Even if you have assets, a sudden death means your loved ones may have to go into debt to cover the cost of a funeral, before being able to liquidate anything.
The cost of a funeral has gone up 88% in a decade. In the meanwhile, savings account barely help you keep up with inflation!
Often you only think about burial or cremation costs, but SunLife report that send off costs, including flowers, the memorial and the wake, or death and funeral notices, average a huge £2,000, up 10% in 2014.
On the flip side, 59% of people are making financial plans to cover the cost of their own funeral, in the form of savings or a prepaid funeral plan.
That is good news considering 1 in 6 people left behind have a hard time meeting funeral costs, and half of them go into debt to cover them.
While death is a hard topic, leaving your family behind with an extra burden is the last thing you want. So do your research, and make sure even in the case of a sudden death that everything will be covered and paid for so your loved ones do not suffer financially.
Click here to learn more over at SunLife
