Contemplating the passing of a parent is not an emotionally easy task but it is a reality that we all have to face. In most instances older people will die before the younger generation and children will want to ensure that their parents receive a dignified funeral.
Somebody has to bear the costs of a funeral and the onus is usually on the children and other relatives. It can be a costly affair with a simple funeral easily passing the R30,000 mark. Getting a funeral plan for parents is therefore a logical choice for any child who feels the responsibility in ensuring a befitting funeral for their mother or father.
Cost of Parent Funeral Plan
Parents can be covered under their own plan even if you are paying for it as their child. However, the more cost-effective option in many instances is to cover your parents under a single family funeral cover. This is the plan that covers you, your spouse and your children.
Family funeral cover can even be extended to your grandparents and parents-in-law. You may feel that it is unnecessary to do so as you are younger and not at risk of death but the fact of the matter is that nobody knows when death will strike. You may even pass on well before your parents.
Therefore you should look at taking out funeral cover for yourself at the same time as your parents, whether it is under a single cover just for you or a family funeral plan with all relatives who are liable for cover.
Benefits for the Elderly
It is important to read the fine print and ensure that the insurer will cover your parents at a certain age. As a person gets older their chances of dying naturally increases significantly. The older a person is at starting a funeral plan, the higher the premium may be but this depends on individual insurers.
As with any insurance policy, it is best to start cover as soon as possible. If you start too late and the policy is risk-profile dependent with age being a factor then you may be compelled to cut back on the benefits in order to afford the policy. This means that you may not be able to give you parents the extravagant final send-off that you would like.
Apart from the cost impact of starting cover for the elderly, you also have to realise that the elderly may pass on at any time, more so than younger individuals. Should a funeral cover waiting period be in place then you may not be able to claim for at least 12 months.
With the elderly being more likely to have chronic diseases, you may even be subjected to a 24 month waiting period if your father or mother have some medical ailment that may be the cause of their death. The bottom line is that signing up earlier has significant benefits, especially when dealing with the elderly like in a funeral plan for parents.