General Price List Funeral Home

A funeral home's General Price List is the single most important document you can request — and the one most families never see until after they have already committed to a provider. The Federal Trade Commission's Funeral Rule (16 CFR Part 453) makes this list a legal requirement. Every funeral home in the United States must hand it to any person who asks, in person or by phone, without requiring a name, contact information, or commitment of any kind.

What the GPL Must Include

The Funeral Rule requires the GPL to itemize every good and service the funeral home offers, along with its individual price. This is the rule that prevents bundling — the practice of wrapping unnecessary services into a single "package" and refusing to sell items separately.

The GPL must list, at minimum:

• Basic services of funeral director and staff — the non-declinable overhead fee that covers coordinating paperwork, permits, and logistics
• Embalming — with a clear disclosure that embalming is not required by law for direct cremation
• Other preparation of the body — washing, dressing, cosmetology
• Viewing and visitation facility use
• Funeral ceremony facility use
• Transfer of remains (body pickup from hospital, home, or facility)
• Hearse and limousine
• Caskets — with a separate price list or a range disclosure
• Alternative containers — specifically for cremation, the GPL must list these
• Direct cremation — as a separate, itemized option with a price range that includes the provider's lowest-cost alternative container

The critical line to look for: the direct cremation fee must appear as its own entry, separate from traditional funeral packages. If the GPL only shows "cremation with service" bundles and does not list a standalone direct cremation price, the provider is violating the Funeral Rule.

What They Cannot Charge You For

The Funeral Rule includes specific prohibitions that protect families choosing direct cremation:

You cannot be required to buy a casket for cremation. The provider must offer an alternative container — typically cardboard, fiberboard, or unfinished wood — and clearly list its price. If a provider tells you a casket is required for cremation, they are breaking federal law.

You cannot be charged a handling fee for bringing your own urn or casket. Families have the legal right to purchase urns, caskets, and alternative containers from third-party retailers (Amazon, online specialty stores, local woodworkers). The funeral home must accept these without adding a surcharge.

You cannot be charged for embalming without prior authorization. If nobody in the family authorized embalming and the provider performed it anyway, they cannot add the charge to the bill. For direct cremation, embalming is never necessary — refrigeration preserves the body until all permits clear.

What to Watch For

The GPL shows you the starting prices. The actual invoice often looks different, because providers add surcharges that are technically disclosed but easy to miss:

• Sheltering/storage fees — $100 to $200 per day for refrigerated holding while waiting for permits, authorization signatures, or coroner review
• Overweight surcharges — $1 to $10 per pound above 250 or 300 pounds, covering a reinforced container and additional staff for transfer
• Pacemaker removal — $50 to $500, required before cremation to prevent retort damage
• Out-of-area transport — $2 to $6.95 per loaded mile beyond the provider's standard pickup radius (usually 15 to 30 miles)
• Weekend or after-hours pickup — additional fees for body transfers outside normal business hours

Ask explicitly: "What fees are not included in the direct cremation price on your GPL?" The provider must answer truthfully. Get the answer in writing on their Statement of Goods and Services Selected — the itemized document you sign before they begin work.

How to Compare Providers

Request GPLs from three to five providers in your area. Focus on the direct cremation line item, then ask each provider to list every possible surcharge that could apply to your specific situation (weight, pacemaker status, distance, timing). The price spread for identical services in the same metropolitan area can be enormous — the national range for direct cremation runs from roughly $795 to $3,600 for the exact same physical process.

Compare the total estimated cost, not just the base GPL price. A provider advertising $795 for direct cremation plus $200 in sheltering fees, $150 for transport, and $150 for a pacemaker removal is more expensive than a provider listing $1,400 all-inclusive.

The Direct Cremation Guide includes a provider comparison worksheet with the specific questions to ask, a surcharge checklist, and a side-by-side cost template so you can evaluate three providers at once without relying on memory during one of the hardest weeks of your life.