I lean on what state insurance regulators publish. Read what a policy pays, and to whom, before you sign.
Final expense insurance: what it pays, and to whom
It’s usually a whole life policy with a small death benefit, bought for funeral and burial costs. Let me show you how it compares with a preneed funeral contract and a larger life policy.
Jeannie Pond, Licensed Insurance Agent, NPN 8940178, licensed since 2009
We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 14 organizations which offer 52 products in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options.
1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), TTY 1-877-486-2048, 24 hours a day/7 days a week
Final expense insurance
also called burial insurance or funeral insurance
Final expense insurance usually means a whole life policy with a small death benefit, bought to pay for funeral and burial costs. Standard funeral insurance pays the beneficiary you choose, who can use the money in any way; preneed funeral insurance pays the funeral provider you choose. Compared with most life insurance it is easier to qualify for, with few or no health questions, but its benefits are lower and its premiums usually higher.
What burial insurance usually means
Burial insurance usually refers to a whole life insurance policy with a death benefit of $5,000 to $25,000, bought to provide money for funeral and burial costs for yourself or family members, as Minnesota’s Department of Commerce explains. You may be able to buy one after answering a few health questions, with no medical exam.
The two most common types are standard funeral insurance, which is life insurance you buy to pay for your funeral or cremation, and pre-need funeral insurance, which helps pay for the costs you expect, such as funeral home services and merchandise. Both usually last either for a certain amount of time or for your entire life.
Who each one pays
Final expense coverage
You pay premiums
To the insurance company, often weekly or monthly.
When you die
The policy pays a death benefit.
The beneficiary you chose
Who can use it in any way, including:
- The funeral
- Medical bills
- Legal costs
- Debt you owe
A preneed funeral contract
You arrange and pay ahead
For funeral goods and services, such as funeral home services and merchandise. It can set those costs at today’s prices.
Secured, in Florida
By a trust account or by an individual insurance policy. The contract states which.
The funeral provider you choose
Final expense coverage beside a preneed funeral contract
| Final expense coverage | A preneed funeral contract | |
|---|---|---|
| What you buy | A life insurance policy that pays a death benefit when you die. | Funeral goods and services arranged and paid for ahead, such as funeral home services, merchandise, church and burial services. It can set those costs at today’s prices. |
| Who is paid | The beneficiary you chose, who can use it in any way, including the funeral, medical bills, legal costs or debt you owe. | The funeral provider you choose. |
| How it is paid for | Premiums paid to the insurance company, often weekly or monthly. | In Florida, every preneed contract must be secured by a trust account or by an individual insurance policy, and the contract states which. |
| Who may sell it | Mainly brokers and agents of insurance companies licensed to sell life insurance. | In Florida, a seller licensed under chapter 497 of the Florida Statutes; an insurance license alone is not enough unless the seller is a licensed funeral director. |
| If you change your mind | In Florida, you have at least fourteen days after a life policy is delivered to return it for a full premium refund. | In Florida, contracts written since October 1, 1993 are fully refundable in the first thirty days if you ask in writing; services and cash advances can be canceled at any time for a full refund of what you paid. |
When a preneed contract is funded with life insurance, Florida caps that insurance at $21,000 per person, with yearly increases allowed by the Consumer Price Index (Florida Division of Funeral, Cemetery, and Consumer Services).
Before you prepay, the Federal Trade Commission suggests asking:
- What exactly are you paying for: merchandise only, or funeral services as well?
- What happens to the money you prepay, and to any interest it earns?
- Can you cancel the contract and get a full refund if you change your mind?
- What happens if you move, or die while away from home?
Tell your family about the plans you have made and where the papers are, so the same arrangements are not paid for twice.
Final expense coverage beside a larger life policy
| Final expense coverage | A larger life policy | |
|---|---|---|
| Death benefit | Often low: Washington’s regulator gives $5,000 to $25,000 for standard funeral insurance. | Set by the coverage you buy. Term insurance generally offers the most insurance protection for your premium dollar. |
| Health questions | Few or none, and often no medical exam. | Underwriting may weigh your age, health and medical history, occupation and more; higher coverage limits usually mean a closer look, which may include medical records and an exam. |
| How long it lasts | Usually whole life coverage; some policies last a set time. | Term coverage for a set number of years, or permanent coverage designed to last a lifetime. |
| Premium for the coverage | Usually higher than life insurance, with no discount for good health; what you pay in premiums may cost more than your funeral. | Term generally has lower premiums; permanent coverage tends to cost more because of its savings element. |
Want the bigger picture? I explain term and permanent coverage on the life insurance page. For what long-term care insurance pays for, and what Medicare doesn’t, see the long-term care insurance page. Every other kind of coverage is on the services page.
Policies that ask no health questions
You may see ads saying a company won’t turn applicants down. These are policies that ask no health history questions, South Carolina’s Department of Insurance explains, and the company balances its risk by charging higher premiums or by limiting how much insurance you can buy.
What to read before you sign one
Whether the death benefit is limited at first
Such policies may pay only the return of your premiums if you die within the first couple of years. Graded benefit whole life works the same way: for the first few years, the death benefit equals the premiums paid.
How the premiums compare with the benefit
The premiums can be almost as much as the insurance. After a few years, you could pay the company more than it will pay your beneficiary.
What is covered, and what it will cost you
Understand what is covered and what is not, and how much it will cost you, before you sign on to any policy.
Every answer on the application
If information on an application is wrong, whether on purpose or not, the policy may be rescinded and a claim denied later.
What Social Security pays at death
SSA.gov says a spouse or some minor children could get a one-time death payment of $255.
Survivors could also get a monthly payment based on the work history of the family member who died. Social Security’s survivor page names no other one-time payment at death.
Planning a funeral ahead, and what you don’t have to buy
The Federal Trade Commission puts it simply: thinking ahead lets you choose the specific items you want and need, and compare the prices offered by several funeral providers. It also spares your survivors from making these decisions under the pressure of time and strong emotions. You can make arrangements directly with a funeral establishment, and you can make your decisions in advance without paying in advance.
One early decision is where the remains will be buried, entombed or scattered. Many families rush to buy a cemetery plot in the short time after a death, often without visiting the site in person.
Over time, prices may go up, and businesses may close or change ownership. So review and revise your decisions every few years.
What a Florida seller must tell you, and what you can skip
- Prices by phone. A licensee must give accurate retail prices of its burial merchandise and services by telephone when you ask.
- Every price before you choose. A licensee must fully disclose all its regularly offered services and merchandise, with their prices, before you select anything, and give a good faith estimate of all the fees and costs you will incur.
- Embalming is not required. Florida does not require embalming, though a body must be embalmed or refrigerated within 24 hours of death.
- A vault is not required by the state. A cemetery’s own bylaws or rules say whether it requires a vault or grave liner, and it cannot require you to buy one from it.
- An urn is not required. You don’t have to buy an urn for cremated remains.
- Fees on cash advance items. A funeral home must disclose if it collects a fee for items it obtains for you from a third party, such as flowers or death certificates.
Source: the consumer questions from Florida’s Division of Funeral, Cemetery, and Consumer Services.
Writing down your wishes, and how a claim gets paid
The FTC has simple advice: put your funeral preferences in writing, give copies to family members and your attorney, and keep a copy in a handy place. Don’t set them down only in your will, because a will often is not found or read until after the funeral. And don’t keep the only copy in a safe deposit box: your family may have to make arrangements on a weekend or holiday, before the box can be opened.
With a final expense policy, the death benefit goes to the person you chose as your beneficiary. Sometimes that person, or your family, has to track down a policy or follow up on a claim. Florida’s regulators explain what to do in each case.
If a claim is needed
- If no one can find the policy. The Florida Department of Financial Services points to the life insurance policy locator of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners: search “Lost Life” at naic.org. If a participating insurer finds a policy, it contacts you directly. The Medical Information Bureau also searches, with a fee for each search. Both work only after the insured person has died.
- If the death came in the first two years. The company has the right to investigate the claim and review medical records to make sure the application was answered correctly. If it finds a material misstatement, it may deny the claim and refund the premiums.
- If a later claim is delayed. After the two-year period, if a claim has been delayed 30 days or more, make sure the company has every document it asked for. If it received them more than 30 days ago, the Department may be able to help.
- If you are not the policy owner. The company has no obligation to give you information. The Department can obtain beneficiary information, but it discloses it only to the named beneficiary.
- If the funeral home on a preneed contract has closed. It may have changed its name or sold its contracts, which keep the terms they were written with. The Division of Funeral, Cemetery, and Consumer Services can tell you, at 850-413-3039, and its Preneed Funeral Contract Consumer Protection Trust Fund can help pay for a contract that was not assigned to another company.
My license numbers
Jeannie Pond, Licensed Insurance Agent, NPN 8940178. Florida W272782; Arizona 8940178; California 4524185; Georgia 2669678; Indiana 4017600 (health only); Michigan 8940178; New Jersey 3004406991; North Carolina 8940178; Tennessee 960426; Texas 1617709; Virginia 1447142 (health only); Washington 1346341.
Jeannie Pond offers life insurance, annuities, final expense and long-term care coverage.
Before you sign a contract or write a check, make sure the company, broker or agent is licensed to do business in Florida. You can check each of my numbers on the state’s insurance license search, and my about page shows how to check each of my licenses yourself.
We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 14 organizations which offer 52 products in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options.
1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), TTY 1-877-486-2048, 24 hours a day/7 days a week
Before you ask me: common final expense questions
How much does final expense insurance cost per month?
It depends on the insured person’s age, the size of the death benefit and the kind of policy. Policies that ask few or no health questions usually cost more for the coverage, and the premiums can add up to more than the funeral itself. The actual figure comes from the insurer’s quote. I’ll talk through your own situation when you first get in touch.
Is final expense insurance worth it, and is it legitimate?
It’s a kind of life insurance that state regulators describe, and whether it fits depends on what you need it to pay for. Washington’s regulator lists the pros: it’s easier to qualify for, with few or no health questions and often no medical exam. The cons: lower benefits, no discount for good health, higher premiums, and premiums that may cost more than the funeral. Before you sign, check the agent’s and the company’s licenses with the state. For your own situation, ask me when you first reach me.
Does Social Security pay a death benefit?
Yes, a small one. SSA.gov, as of October 2026, says a spouse or some minor children could get a one-time death payment of $255, and survivors could get a monthly payment based on the work history of the family member who died. The survivor page names no other one-time payment at death.
Questions about final expense coverage? Ask me.
Leave your name and how to reach you, and I’ll get back to you. Or just call.Medicare help in Lakeland and nearby cities
We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 14 organizations which offer 52 products in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options.
1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), TTY 1-877-486-2048, 24 hours a day/7 days a week
Jeannie Pond, Licensed Insurance Agent, NPN 8940178. Florida W272782; Arizona 8940178; California 4524185; Georgia 2669678; Indiana 4017600 (health only); Michigan 8940178; New Jersey 3004406991; North Carolina 8940178; Tennessee 960426; Texas 1617709; Virginia 1447142 (health only); Washington 1346341.
Vista Consultants LLC dba Vista Insurance Services holds Florida insurance agency license L135539 (agency NPN 22164003), issued March 19, 2026, with Jeannie Pond as agent in charge.