Buying a funeral plan for your family is often the more sensible way to go rather that opting for a separate policy for each individual. You can also cover your children and parents in the single family funeral cover.
These days most providers also allow you to cover your parents-in-law thereby ensuring that you are not financially inconvenienced when the parents of your spouse pass on. Family funeral cover starts from as little as R30 per month for you, your spouse and children but there is additional premium to cover your parents or in-laws.
About Family Funeral Cover
Family funeral cover is a single funeral plan policy that covers you, your spouse and children. It is not a single cover that only insures you but a single policy that covers the entire family. It can also include your parents and in-laws if you so wish.
A family funeral cover plan pays out a cash amount and other benefits in the event that you or any other person covered on the policy dies. If you have opted for cover through a burial service or undertaker then only the funeral expenses will be covered and you may not received any cash in your hand.
Death is inevitable but it is an uncertainty as to when it will occur. You may plan for only your funeral or that of the elders in your family, but are you prepared should your child die unexpectedly?
Disease, accidents and even crime can cut the life of any person short. Family funeral cover removes the financial impact of paying for a funeral for any member of your family. The benefits on funeral plans may not always be in terms of monetary value but can nevertheless be of help at a time when you are grieving.
Costs of Family Funeral Plans
As with any policy, the more people that are covered under a single policy the cheaper it is per person. Family funeral cover therefore is the better way to go in terms of cost. It is important to understand the cost implications though. Family funeral cover according to most funeral plan providers covers the nuclear family at a set fee. The nuclear family is the father, mother and children.
Some policies will also include your son-in-law and daughter-in-law within your family cover at no extra charge but the payout may be smaller for these individuals. The cost of the family funeral cover is determined by the age of the main member, who is assumed to be the eldest in the family. This calculation may vary from one insurer to the next.
Parents and In-Laws
Parents or parents-in-law are part of the extended family. While you can cover your parents and in-laws under your policy, you will have to pay slightly more for them to be included. It may not be as much as taking out an individual policy for these elders but they are not automatically included in the family cover.
The costs of family funeral cover can vary among providers but not to a large degree. The main determining factor is the level of cover that you opt for and the funeral plan benefits that may be included in the policy.
The cover of your parents and in-laws in your family funeral cover is one that has to be considered carefully. As your parents and in-laws are usually older than 65 years of age, the add-on premium to include them in your funeral plan policy is usually higher.
This is understandable as the older you get, the more likely you are to die and therefore claim. Insurers need to cover themselves by charging higher rates for older people. So while your family funeral cover premium is determined by the age of the main member, adding your parents and in-laws can significantly increase the monthly costs.