The Ethical Funeral Plans Trust (EFPT) was established in 2007. Originally set up by Peace Funerals, of Sheffield, it is now used by a select group of independent funeral directors across the UK.
The Trust holds, and invests funds of funeral planholders, on behalf of funeral directors. In this way, the Ethical Funeral Plans Trust is like any other Trust providing a funeral planning service.
But what makes EFPT distinctive is that we are driven by the desire to behave ethically in everything we do.
In practice this means we are the only Trust committed to all the following:
- Invest Planholders’ Monies in Ethical Funds
- Insist upon Funeral Directors operating Transparent Pricing Policies
- Ban our Funeral Directors from using Dubious Marketing Tactics
- Have Clearly Expressed, and Fair, Terms and Conditions
- Give Surplus Funds (after all funeral planholders’ funerals have been paid for) to Charities, rather than to Directors or Trustees
The trustees are a group of people who have experience of the funeral industry or other relevant professional expertise. The Trust also has independent financial advisers, who advise on investment strategy.
Apart from receiving a nominal fee for attending meetings, and being paid for any professional services provided, trustees do not get paid.
When a planholder dies, and once proof has been provided to the Trust, the Trustees will pay the funeral director the original amount paid for the plan (excluding the admin fee) increased in line with Consumer Price Index (CPI) rises. Details can be found in the Trust's Terms and Conditions.
When a planholder takes out a plan with us, they are being given certain guarantees. As the funeral director, you are agreeing that you will not charge the family any extra for any service that appears within the plan specification under the ‘funeral director’s costs’.
However, as far as ‘disbursements’ are concerned, you will receive from the Trust the original amount charged for these plus CPI increases. If the actual cost of the disbursements at the time that the funeral is carried out is more than this, you may charge the difference to the person arranging the funeral.
The only other situation in which you may levy additional charges is when the customer decides that they want to have extra services to those originally specified within the plan document. These can be charged for at your normal ‘at need’ rates.
Yes. Every customer who takes out a plan with the Trust will pay an administration fee. Part of this fee pays for the Trust’s administrative costs and part funds the funeral directors commission.
No. The Trustees believe very strongly that their role is to provide a means by which planholder money can be looked after safely and grow in line with inflation, and nothing else. If you are looking for a Funeral Planning organisation that provides extra bonuses for funeral directors (which, after all, have to come out of planholders’ monies), you need to look elsewhere. We don’t believe that this approach is ethical.
If you are interested in exploring further whether EFPT plans might be right for you, please get in touch. The simplest way is by emailing us.
Before you can start selling the Trust’s plans, you will have to sign up to the ethical principles that have been mentioned above.
No. Funeral directors are free to provide funeral plans from other funeral planning organisations.