Good Funeral Guide and Open join forces... blog
Good Funeral Guide teams with Open Prepaid Funerals to launch first ever 100% consumer-focussed prepaid funeral plan
- Posted 16th March 2015
Whether you’re wondering how much a funeral costs, what a funeral director does or want to know more about funeral etiquette, our funeral guidance and advice section can help. Explore the below guides for funeral support.
Good Funeral Guide teams with Open Prepaid Funerals to launch first ever 100% consumer-focussed prepaid funeral plan
In 2003, Open started its business selling funeral plans within a market that was both young and disrupted.
Funeral Planning is growing rapidly. The number of people in the UK taking out a funeral plan continues to increase each year with over 135,000 plans taken out in 2013 alone. Since our launch in 2003 we have also seen constant year on year growth.
Open Prepaid Funerals Limited provide one of the leading funeral plans in terms of financial performance for funeral directors and that means a lot to us.
While religious funerals can be seen as the more traditional type of service, non-religious funeral services are becoming increasingly popular - and it's all dependent on the beliefs of the person who has passed away.
We have some important news to share with you that could make an immediate difference to your decision about taking out an Open Prepaid Funerals Plan.
The following article is Republished from the Good Funeral Guide website
Here at Open Prepaid Funerals, we understand that planning a funeral can be a stressful time and unexpected costs can soon mount up. There are hundreds of sites and articles that try to dispel the myths associated to funeral planning, but with the national average of a funeral service standing at approximately £4,000, we want to show you exactly what types, services and products are typically associated to a funeral, and the financial impact of this.
OK, let's get something straight right from the very start.
Keeping things as simple and clean as possible for 16 years is proving to be the right thing to do. In fact, it looks like the first 16 years have just been the foundation to the next 16 and way beyond.
Over the last few months, the world has been exposed to a very difficult period - economically, emotionally and physically. As COVID-19 continues to impact our day to day lives in every corner of the globe, funeral planning has become a much more prevalent topic than ever before.
In life, it's an inevitable fact that we will require a funeral one day. We don't always know when this time will be - and that's the trouble when it comes to planning. However, that's where Open Prepaid Funerals can help. By taking control over your funeral, you can protect loved ones from emotional and financial stress when the time comes. A prepaid funeral plan manages the logistics of the funeral, including the preparation of the funeral itself, as well as arrangements before and after the service. Learn more about how funeral plans work from our detailed guide.
When people are selecting a prepaid funeral plan, they want to ensure their wishes are taken care of; they are guaranteed of a smooth, seamless funeral process; and, ultimately, they have confidence in a plan which will take the added pressure off their loved ones when their time comes. That is where having a good funeral director on hand is integral. So, how should clients know what qualities to look for in a good funeral director?
A humanist funeral service is a non-religious ceremony which celebrates the life of someone who has passed away. Often, this type of funeral is led by a humanist celebrant, or alternatively, you could also arrange your own non-religious memorial.
Living through a global pandemic is a testing experience on its own. However, having to the contend with the loss of a loved one during a time of such uncertainty is likely to cause emotional strain on families. That's why, here at Open Prepaid Funeral, we want to alleviate the emotional stress having a funeral in a pandemic can cause on families and loved ones as much as possible.
Being asked to be a pallbearer at a funeral can be a very daunting experience, as it is hard to imagine carrying the casket of your loved one. However, being a pallbearer is considered a great honour, as asking someone to be a pallbearer usually means an awful lot to the deceased’s family. So, what exactly is a pallbearer, and what does it involve?
Grieving is an individual experience, and there is no set way in which a person grieves. How you react to loss can be dependent on many factors such as life experience, how close the loss was to you, personality, faith, coping style and more attributes. As you likely know from past experience, grief often takes a toll on your physical health as well as your mental health, which is why it's important to use healthy outlets to cope with your loss. That's why we've put together this guide helping you cope with grief and loss, highlighting the signs of grief to look out for, and ways to alleviate grief in the future.
When a loved one has passed away, it's natural for their nearest and dearest to attend their funeral to celebrate their life, and pay their respects. But what if some of their nearest and dearest are children?
Many families wish to host a personal and intimate service to celebrate the end of their loved one's life, and one way to do this is to hire a funeral celebrant. A funeral celebrant is also referred to as a funeral officiant, which is a qualified person who helps officiate funeral services, support the bereaved family, as well as organise and conduct the funeral. The celebrant will usually be independent, and will be engaged by the funeral director on behalf of the family. They will be able to offer a non-religious funeral, as well as a funeral with prayers and spiritual themes.
Looking to have a pre-paid funeral plan set in place to help alleviate emotional and financial stress from your loved ones when you pass? You're not alone - many people choose this route as it has numerous benefits not just for you to ensure your wishes are respected, but for your loved ones, too.
Yes, you'll be pleased to hear that we are not increasing our funeral plan administration fee from 1st April 2022. For the foreseeable future, and for as long as we can reasonably do so prior to our expected FCA authorisation, we will maintain our administration fee at £195.00 per plan.
As we write this on the 4th April 2022 we can confirm that our application process for authorisation by the FCA continues and we're working through the stages with our case officer. It must be said that it's a full belt and braces approach from the FCA and given the recent events with the demise of Safe Hands that has to be a good thing.
Funerals are intended to celebrate and honour the life of a loved one, and to provide an opportunity for family and friends to say their final goodbyes. However, there is no one way of conducting a funeral – a person may wish for a non-conventional funeral, while some may want their attendees to wear bright colours instead of black.
Grief is a difficult process and often you may feel alone and isolated due to your experience. Often, we can find some sort of comfort in the words of others – especially when they have experienced the same thing as us.
Still have some funeral related queries that haven’t been answered? Get in touch with a member of our caring team for funeral support and advice. Alternatively, browse our full range of prepaid funeral plans online now.