Should funeral plans be included as an asset when valuing an estate?

stripey1969

My mother-in-law passed away in the summer, at which point we found out she had not one funeral plans but two (!). With the COVID regulations that were in place at the time the funeral was small and so we've found ourselves in the weird situation where the plans are paying out more than the cost of the funeral. Does anyone know if the payments we've received from these plans should be counted as assets when valuing the estate?

Marcon

stripey1969 said:

My mother-in-law passed away in the summer, at which point we found out she had not one funeral plans but two (!). With the COVID regulations that were in place at the time the funeral was small and so we've found ourselves in the weird situation where the plans are paying out more than the cost of the funeral. Does anyone know if the payments we've received from these plans should be counted as assets when valuing the estate?

Depends on who 'owns' the excess payments. It could be the estate, it could be the person responsible for arranging the funeral. Have a look at the paperwork and if it isn't clear (and it may well not be), give the plan provider(s) or indeed the funeral director you used a ring and check with them.

stripey1969

Thanks Marcon, that's a good point and good advice!