General Price List Funeral: Your FTC Funeral Rule Rights Explained

What the Funeral Rule Actually Requires

The FTC Funeral Rule, in effect since 1984, gives you three specific rights that most grieving families don't know they have:

Right to an itemized price list. Every funeral home must hand you a printed General Price List (GPL) at the start of any in-person visit where you discuss arrangements. They cannot make you ask for it — they are legally required to provide it before any discussion of services or prices. Over the phone, they must disclose the price of any item you ask about.

Right to choose only what you want. Funeral homes cannot force you to buy a pre-packaged bundle. You can select individual items — a viewing without embalming, cremation without a casket rental, a graveside service without a chapel ceremony. If you only want basic services, that's your legal right.

Right to use outside products. You can purchase a casket or urn from any retailer — online, from a woodworker, from a big-box store — and the funeral home must accept it without charging a handling fee. This single right can save families hundreds to thousands of dollars.

How to Read a General Price List

A GPL is an itemized menu. It typically breaks down into these categories:

Basic services fee — a non-declinable charge for the funeral director's basic services and overhead. The GPL lists the provider's fee; compare it across providers.

Transfer of remains — the cost to bring the body to the funeral home. The GPL lists the provider's price; ask how distance or mileage affects it.

Embalming — no state requires embalming in every situation, though some may require it if the body is not buried or cremated within a certain timeframe. If you're choosing direct cremation or immediate burial, ask whether embalming is required for your circumstances and whether you can decline it.

Viewing and ceremony fees — facility rental for visitation, funeral services, or memorial services. These are separate line items, and you can choose which you need. A memorial service without a body present typically costs less than a full funeral with viewing.

Casket — compare the funeral home's casket prices with outside retailers. The funeral home cannot refuse an outside casket or charge a fee for handling it.

Common Overcharges to Watch For

"Required embalming" when it isn't. Some funeral homes tell families that embalming is required by law. In most states, this is only true under specific circumstances. Ask which specific state statute requires it for your situation.

Cash advance markups. Funeral homes may pay third parties for things like flowers, obituary placement, and certified death certificates on your behalf. They must list each cash-advance item separately on the itemized statement and disclose in writing if they add an extra fee; the FTC Funeral Rule does not require them to pass the items through at cost. Ask what any difference from the outside provider's price covers.

Bundled "package" pressure. A funeral director who steers you toward a package without first offering the GPL itemized is violating the Funeral Rule. Packages are fine if they save you money, but you must be able to compare the package price against the sum of the individual items.

Filing a Complaint

If a funeral home refuses to provide a GPL, won't accept an outside casket, or pressures you into services you didn't choose, report a suspected violation to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. You can also ask your state's attorney general or funeral regulator how to file a complaint.

The How to Write an Obituary toolkit covers the financial side of end-of-life administration, including a funeral cost comparison worksheet and an itemized budget tracker that helps you cross-reference the GPL against your actual needs.