Approximately 69% of American adults say they’d rather handle their own funeral planning activities than put the responsibility on their families.

Yet, many of these individuals don’t take the time to make these plans. So, if you’re among those that value funeral pre-planning services and decide to plan yours, you might have a few questions.

For example, you might wonder about the difference between burial insurance and pre-need funeral insurance. Are these products the same or different? 

Here is a guide to help you learn what these are and their primary differences. 

Basic Features of Burial Insurance

Let’s start with burial insurance. Burial insurance is a product you purchase from a life insurance company. Some insurance companies call this final expense insurance or life insurance. 

You can choose the amount of burial insurance you’d like your policy to offer, and you might want to base this on your funeral planning services.

How much will your funeral cost? You can find out by meeting with a funeral home.

One of the perks of buying burial insurance is that you can name your beneficiaries. Then when you die, they can contact the insurance company to file a claim for your death benefits. 

The insurance company sends them the check, and they can use the money to cover all your funeral costs. 

Basic Features of Pre-Need Funeral Insurance 

Pre-need plans also help your family pay for your funeral, but they aren’t the same as burial insurance plans. Funeral homes often call these prepaid plans, as they require a contract with the funeral home.

To purchase a pre-need plan, you must meet with the funeral home that you choose for your funeral services. They’ll give you a quote for the services you’d like, and you pay the money upfront. 

The funeral home must perform the agreed-upon services when you die. The benefit of a pre-need plan is that your family won’t have to pay anything, as you’ve already paid the fees. 

Choose the Right Products

As you compare these options, you might want to consider which is best for you. You can begin by considering how much your funeral will cost, which depends on what you want. 

You can choose burial or cremation services, and cremation is more popular. Cremation might cost less than burial services, but you can still host a funeral service even with cremation. 

The benefit of buying a pre-need plan is that it covers all the costs, leaving your family with fewer things to do to prepare your funeral plans. 

The benefit of burial insurance is that there might be money left after your family pays the funeral costs. Your beneficiaries can then keep this money. 

Learn More About Pre-Planning Your Funeral

Pre-planning your funeral is helpful for your family. It takes their focus off the financial details when you pass away and reduces their responsibilities.

As you search for the right products, you might want to consider buying funeral insurance and pre-need funeral insurance. 

If you have further questions about these products, feel free to contact us at USA Life Insurance Services. We can answer your questions and help you choose the right products.