It wasn’t until I started learning how to become an End of Life Planning Coach that I really had some of my assumptions tested when it comes to death, dying and therefore, arranging a funeral.
Up until relatively recently, I held a belief that I think a lot of people share, But it turns out that it’s untrue.
You Do Not Need To Use A Funeral Director
And that belief is that you need to use a Funeral Director when organising and arranging a funeral. It’s simply not true.
You actually don’t have to use a Funeral Director if you don’t want to although there are many reasons why you may want to do so. However, there is nothing in the law that says you have to do so.
I was recently talking to somebody who raised this with me because they thought that you did need to use a Funeral Director and that it was a requirement of the law.
This got me thinking and second guessing myself so I went away and checked my facts. And nope, you don’t have to use a Funeral Director.
I think it’s one of those things people believe to be the case because it is so common and so we’ve just come to assume that it’s necessary and that there’s no choice involved.
Myth Busting Ideas About Funerals
And that’s the myth here that I really want to bust; I want to tell you that you do have a choice.
If you want to explore this yourself, then I’d highly recommend checking out the Natural Death Centre website and in particular the ‘Common Funeral Myths – Know your Facts?’ page.
The page lists a number of direct quotes from people who have been told things that are misleading and/or untrue and include:
“We thought that you had to use a funeral director to organise a funeral.”
“The crematorium said they would not be able to cremate Dad unless we used a funeral director”.
Whilst these examples are from just one website, I encourage you to do your own due diligence and research on this topic. That way you’ll be fully informed as to what your options are and what can, and cannot, take place when it comes to funerals.
You’ll Probably Still Want To Use A Funeral Director
I’m not saying at all that you shouldn’t use a Funeral Director.
In truth, when the time comes and it’s necessary for me to arrange funerals, I fully intend to use a Funeral Director.
That said, I think there’s a lot to be said for doing a bit of ‘Funeral Director shopping’.
Don’t just pick the first one you find at the time you need it, but actually shop around – they’re not all the same.
Like any service, every Funeral Director will offer different things in different ways and because each has its own approach, you may find that one resonates with you more than another.
Therefore I highly recommend that you go and check out the different Funeral Directors in your local area, even if you don’t need them right now, at this point in time (ESPECIALLY if you don’t need them at this point in time!)
Final Thoughts
Part of my job is to help educate, and raise awareness around, the options available when it comes to end of life matters. And that includes arranging a funeral.
So, the one thing you need to know about arranging a funeral is that you do not need to use a Funeral Director.
But of course, you may wish to do so which is why it’s important to find the right one for you.
Because when the time comes, the decision will already have been made.
And will help to make life easier at what will be a very, very difficult time.
Until next time, take care.
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