If the person who died had a funeral plan, you must find out if it’s fully paid up and what burial/cremation/alkaline hydrolysis costs are covered.
Award the lower flat rate to the client if the person who died was aged 18 or over and either:
If the plan is not fully paid and the provider only agrees to honour part of it, raise a case query with the Decision Support Team.
Sometimes funeral providers cancel plans not fully paid up and instead return premiums or a cash payment.
In these cases, award the higher flat-rate payment. Deduct from the total award amount any premiums or cash payments that are available and can help pay funeral costs. For further guidance, go to Assessing available funds from the deceased’s estate.
If the provider of the plan has gone into administration (or liquidation), do not award the lower rate straight away. First check if the provider:
If the provider in administration agreed to honour or transferred the plans to another provider, case managers should award the lower rate.
If the provider in administration is not going to honour the plans, case managers should award the higher rate.
Raise a case query with the Decision Support Team if the plan is not fully paid and the provider in administration agrees to only honour part of it.
Read the Funeral Support Payment flat-rate payment guidance for further information on how funeral plans affect the amount awarded.