A wrongful death lays a heavy cost both financially and emotionally on the loved ones left behind and some of those costs require payment sooner than others. Given that a body risks decay without embalming, a funeral is one of those.
Understanding your options in raising and recovering the cost of a funeral may help ease the pressure in the immediate and long-term aftermath when working past this expense.
Understanding the cost of a funeral
According to the National Funeral Directors Association, the national median cost of an adult funeral ranges between $6,970 and $7,848, assuming a viewing with cremation or burial respectively. Burials may cost more depending on whether a cemetery requires that you pay for a cement vault in the burial plot. Vault costs range around $1,572.
Other costs involved in that median estimate may include embalmings, which many funeral homes require if you wish to have an open-casket viewing. Basic costs include service fees, the transfer of remains and either the burial casket or, in the case of a cremation, a rental casket for the viewing.
Raising the cost of a funeral
You do what you have to when it comes to raising the funds for the cost of your loved one’s funeral. Many funeral homes require partial or full payment before rendering services. Some families look to impromptu fundraisers like car washes. Others dip into nest egg savings accounts to make up for the unexpected bill.
It helps to lean on any and all resources to get you through this stressful time of grieving. After raising the funds and paying the costs, a wrongful death case against the responsible parties may help you recover the money you spent.
