Help paying for a funeral

The average cost, before optional items such as flowers and catering, is around £4,285 Although this can vary a lot depending on the type of funeral chosen.

You can find out more about how to keep this cost down in our guide How much does a funeral cost?

Sometimes, the person who has died has already paid for their funeral. If so, the executor of the estate will take care of paying the funeral bill.

They may have:

• left some money in their estate to cover it in the form of savings or investments
• a pre-paid funeral plan 
• a life insurance plan.

Some employers pay a fixed sum if you die, which could help pay for a funeral. 

Otherwise, usually a relative or friend pays for the funeral. But they can get the funeral costs back from the estate if there’s enough in it.

The local council or hospital can arrange a Public Health FuneralOpens in a new window if:

• there isn’t enough money in the estate to pay for it
• there are no relatives or friends available to arrange the funeral.

This is usually a cremation. You can attend the funeral but the local council will decide the time and date.

There’s normally is a short service, but extras such as flowers, cars or notices in the local newspaper aren’t included.

If you’re getting certain benefits, you can also apply for a Funeral Expenses Payment from the government to help you pay for the funeral.

Funeral Expenses Payment, known as Funeral Support payment in Scotland, is a government scheme for people on a low income who are receiving certain benefits to help them pay for a funeral.

If you get one of these payments, you’ll usually have to pay the government back from any money you get from the person’s estate, such as their savings.

It won’t cover the whole funeral bill, so you might have to pay up to a third of the cost of a simple funeral.

It can help to pay for:

• death certificates or other documents
• cremation fees, including the cost of the doctor’s certificate
• travel to arrange or go to the funeral
• the cost of moving the body within the UK, if it’s being moved more than 50 miles
• burial fees for a particular plot
• you can also get money for any other funeral expenses, such as funeral director’s fees, flowers or the coffin.

If you’re getting one or more of the following qualifying benefits:

• Income Support
• Housing Benefit
• the disability or severe disability element of Working Tax Credit
• Pension Credit
• Universal Credit
• Child Tax Credit
• income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• income-related Employment and Support Allowance.

The Funeral Expenses Payment is also subject to the relationship you had with the person who died. To qualify, you must have been one of the following: 

• the partner, close friend or relative of the person who died

• the parent of a baby stillborn after 24 weeks of pregnancy

• the parent of a child who has died who was under 16, or under 20 and in full-time approved education.

For the purposes of claiming a funeral payment, you’re a close relative if you were: 

• the parent, father-in-law, mother-in-law or step-parent

• the son, son-in-law, step-son or step-son-in-law 

• the daughter, daughter-in-law, step-daughter or step-daughter-in-law

• the brother or brother-in-law l sister or sister-in-law.

The person who died is your partner if you: 

• lived with them and they were your husband, wife or civil partner or lived with them as if you were a married couple 

• lived with them as if you were a married couple immediately before you or they went to live in a care home 

• were a married couple or civil partners and living in the same care home

• were living together as if you were a married couple in the same care home before your partner died.

You have six months from the date of the funeral to make a claim. See the table below to find out how to apply in your region.

There are other bereavement benefits available to help you cope financially after a death.

If you live in England or Wales and you are getting certain benefits, you can also apply for up to £1,000 Funeral Expenses Payment to help cover some of the other reasonable costs.

In Scotland, the average payment is £2,065Opens in a new window for contribution towards any reasonable funeral costs you need to pay for such as the funeral service or funeral car. Funeral Support PaymentOpens in a new window helps pay for funeral costs if you live in Scotland.

In Northern Ireland, the Child Funeral Fund is a one-off lump sum payment of £3,056, to cover funeral costs, which can be paid either directly to the funeral director or you, or split between both. What you earn or how much you have in savings will not affect what you get. You do not need to be getting benefits to apply. For more information and how to applyOpens in a new window, see nidirect.

For practical and emotional support during this time, the stillbirth and neonatal death charity Sands might be able to help. Find out more on the Sands websiteOpens in a new window

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Some people will have already arranged to pay for their funeral. This is normally in the form of a pre-paid funeral plan or funeral insurance.

The person who has died might have pre-paid a funeral director or a funeral care company for a specific type of funeral. This is called a funeral plan.

With a funeral plan, you have to use that funeral director, or one from an approved list, to arrange the funeral.

It’s a good idea to check exactly what’s covered by the plan before you arrange the funeral. Funeral plans often don’t cover all the expenses of a funeral. So you need to be prepared to pay for some of the costs yourself.

This is a type of insurance that pays out a fixed lump sum which should cover the cost of a funeral.

This insurance is sometimes known as an ‘over 50s plan’.

When the lump sum is paid out, you can then use it to pay for a funeral from any funeral director.

You should check how much the lump sum is before you make any funeral arrangements.

If the price of the funeral is more than that sum, you’ll need to pay for any extras.

Unfortunately, there is no central place or directory to check if the person who’s died had a funeral plan or insurance.

If you think they’ve got one, check their papers for a copy of this.

Also check if this was stored with the will, with a family solicitor or at the bank.

The person who died might have left money in their account to pay for their funeral.

However, the bank or building society normally freezes their individual account(s) when they’re told of the person’s death.

You usually need the help of the executor or administrator of the estate to access the money in their account once it’s frozen.

It is sometimes possible to access the money in their account without their help.

As a minimum, you’ll need a copy of the death certificate, and an invoice for the funeral costs with your name on it.

The bank or building society might also want proof of your identity.

They can then pay the essential funeral bills directly to the company providing the service.

It’s not a good idea to access the person’s individual accounts, even if you know their debit card PIN or online banking log-in.

Speak to the bank first if you need to do this – or you could get into legal trouble.

If the person who died has a joint account where the joint owner is still alive, that person can still access the money in the account.

A funeral director will often ask for at least some of the money up front.

If you can’t do this, you might need to think about having a more affordable funeral.

Another option is to ask if you could pay the bill in instalments.

If they agree, you can then negotiate instalments – but make sure that these are affordable for you.

Whoever pays for the funeral – family, friends or the council – can look to recover the costs from the estate of the person who died.

Sometimes, their estate isn’t large enough to cover this.

If the person who died had other debts, funeral costs are usually paid first.

However, some secured debts, such as a mortgage, are paid before funeral costs.

If you offer to pay for the funeral, it’s worth checking with the administrator of the estate that you’re able to recover the money later if you need to.

Knowing how much money is in the estate to cover the funeral costs might also affect the type of funeral you want to pay for.

Try not to feel pressured into paying for a funeral you can’t afford.