How much Burial Insurance do I need in 2024?
last updated on March 26, 2024We are often asked, “how much burial insurance do I need? Your burial insurance need will vary depending on your personal and financial circumstances, but importantly you need enough to cover your end-of-life expenses.
The average cost of funeral and burial services is increasing each year, and you can pay for these services by purchasing affordable burial insurance. By having insurance coverage, you can ensure that you will not be a burden to your family when you pass away.
Burial insurance can give you peace of mind because you can provide your family with enough funds to pay for your final expenses. Understanding how much coverage you need to provide the kind of funeral you deserve is important in choosing the amount of your burial insurance.
This article will provide more information on calculating your burial insurance need and finding the best plan that will suit your need.
FOR EASIER NAVIGATION:
- What Is Burial Insurance?
- Types Of Burial Insurance
- How Much Does A Funeral Cost?
- Guide Questions To Calculate Your Final Expenses
- How Much Burial Insurance Do I Need?
- Burial Insurance Costs
- How Can Funeral Funds Help Me?
- Additional Questions & Answers On How Much Burial Insurance Do I Need?
What Is Burial Insurance?
Burial insurance is also called funeral insurance, cremation insurance, or final expense insurance, and it is meant to cover the cost of a funeral, burial, and other end-of-life expenses. After you pass away, buying burial insurance will not leave your family with a mountain of debt.
Most families don’t have the funds to pay for the funeral and burial. One study shows that approximately 62% of Americans have less than $1,000 in their savings account, which is insufficient to cover funeral expenses.
That’s the reason why final expense insurance is so important. Burial insurance can protect your family from a financial disaster upon your passing.
You can easily qualify for burial insurance because it has an easy underwriting process (easy health questions). Most people with pre-existing medical conditions qualify because there is no medical exam.
You only need to answer some health questions. Your application can be submitted online or over the phone. Approval is quick, with no need to wait a month or two to know if you are covered.
Burial insurance can be a great alternative for people who won’t qualify for traditional or whole life insurance because of health issues. You can qualify for burial plans regardless of a medical condition because there are plans that do not ask health questions.
Burial insurance has a wide range of coverage options. You can choose between $2,000 and $50,000, depending on the coverage you need.
Funeral insurance is whole life insurance that works this way:
- Fixed monthly premiums for life
- The policy will never expire when you reach 80 years old
- The death benefit amount is guaranteed never to decrease
- Accumulates cash value
If you do not expect to have enough funds to cover your burial and final expenses at the end of your life, then a burial insurance policy might make sense for you.
Even if you expect to leave enough money for your funeral budget, you may not want your estate to be depleted by your funeral expenses. Having a final expense insurance policy is one way to ensure that your entire estate will be available to your loved ones.
Types Of Burial Insurance
SIMPLIFIED ISSUE BURIAL INSURANCE
Simplified issue whole life insurance offers immediate coverage. This plan is burial insurance with no waiting period. Coverage starts from the very first day! It does not require a medical exam, and the company underwrites your health based on your answer to several health questions.
Simplified issue insurance has a lower face amount or coverage than term insurance.
The underwriting is relaxed, but you can be denied coverage because of some pre-existing medical conditions, terminal illness, smoking, or taking part in risky activities or occupations.
Possible questions you might see on the application include:
- Have you been diagnosed with a terminal illness like cancer in the last two years?
- Do you have HIV, AIDS, or AIDS-related complex?
- Do you suffer from heart disease or a stroke?
- Do you have kidney disease requiring dialysis?
- Do you have any cognitive impairment like dementia or Alzheimer’s disease?
- Do you have a disability that needs a wheelchair or confinement to a nursing home?
- Do you need help with activities of daily living such as eating, bathing, dressing, toileting, continence, and transferring?
Minor health issues like high cholesterol or high blood pressure are considered normal and non-issue.
The main point of health questions in simplified issue insurance is to rule out potentially high-risk applicants, like those with terminal illnesses like cancer.
Simplified issue burial insurance is the best option for people over 50 up to 85 years old, who may have some health issues that could prevent them from getting coverage through the traditional way.
This is an excellent option if you’re not in perfect health or are too busy to take a medical exam, or simply have a fear of needles.
GUARANTEED ISSUE BURIAL INSURANCE
If you are between 50-85, guaranteed issue whole life insurance will provide your family with up to $25,000 of coverage without a medical exam or health questions. Your approval is guaranteed!
A Guaranteed Issue (GI) policy provides insurance coverage regardless of your health, age, or any other risk factors. A GI policy is life insurance for the elderly or people who cannot qualify for any type of life insurance due to high-risk factors; almost anyone who can enter into a legal contract can be eligible.
Here are some examples of the most common medical conditions where a guaranteed issue burial life expense policy is your only option:
- Alzheimer’s or dementia
- Dialysis
- HIV or AIDS
- Organ transplants
- Oxygen use
- Terminal illness
- Wheelchair-bound because of chronic disease
- Mobility issue, needing help with any activities of daily living
Guaranteed issue policies will accept applicants with these medical issues.
Since insurance companies assume a higher risk in providing coverage, the cost of guaranteed acceptance policies is generally higher than other insurance policies.
Guaranteed issue life insurance has a graded benefit for the first two years. The two-year waiting period applies to the natural cause of death. If you pass away due to natural causes during the two-year waiting period, your beneficiary will receive only the premiums you paid plus 7-10% interest.
Accidental death is fully covered even during the two-year waiting period, and the life insurance company will pay your beneficiary 100% of the death benefit. After the waiting period, you are covered for life, and your beneficiary will receive a 100% death benefit if you die for any reason.
How Much Does A Funeral Cost?
Your first step is determining how much burial insurance you will need to know your end-of-life expenses.
Your funeral cost is the first thing that will come to your mind because it’s often the biggest single expense. Other “final expenses” to consider – outstanding medical bills, living expenses, legal costs, and credit card bills, to name a few.
According to the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) website, the average cost of an adult funeral today is $8,755.
This amount only includes the most commonly used items for a traditional funeral. It doesn’t include the cost of the cemetery. A burial plot can cost about $2,000, so the average funeral and burial cost could be over $10,000.
Here is the funeral cost breakdown from NFDA:
AVERAGE COST OF AN ADULT FUNERAL WITH VIEWING AND BURIAL
- $2,100 – Basic services fee
- $325 – Removal of remains to funeral home
- $725 – Embalming
- $250 – Other preparation of the body
- $500 – Use of funeral facilities and staff for a funeral ceremony
- $435 – Use of funeral facilities and staff for viewing
- $325 – Hearse
- $150 – Service car
- $160 – Basic memorial printed package
- $2,400 – Metal Casket
- $1,395 – Vault
- $8,755 – TOTAL
AVERAGE COST OF AN ADULT FUNERAL WITH VIEWING AND CREMATION
- $2,100 – Non-declinable basic services fee
- $325 – Removal of remains to funeral home
- $725 – Embalming
- $250 – Other preparation of the body
- $500 – Use of funeral facilities and staff for a funeral ceremony
- $435 – Use of funeral facilities and staff for viewing
- $150 – Service car
- $160 – Basic memorial printed package
- $350 – Cremation fee
- $1,000 – Cremation Casket
- $275 – Urn
- $6,260 – TOTAL
There may be other funeral and burial expenses depending on the funeral service you choose and the type of casket, headstone, services, and miscellaneous items you want to be included.
Prices can also differ depending on the location of the funeral and burial. For example, a chapel service can be more expensive, particularly if the funeral service is conducted at a chapel far from the funeral home.
Guide Questions To Calculate Your Final Expenses
The amount of burial insurance you need will depend upon your final wishes.
Use these guide questions to help you determine how much burial insurance you need:
- Do you want to be embalmed?
- Do you want to be cremated or buried?
- What type of casket do you want?
- Would you have a viewing? How many days?
- What kind of headstone do you want?
- How far is the funeral home from your house?
- What kind of service will you use for transportation?
- What type of funeral home facilities will your family need to use?
- How many death certificates will your family need to close your estate?
- How much allowance will you allot for other final expenses?
You can request a general price list from your nearest funeral home to know how much each service costs. Add up all these funeral costs to determine how much burial insurance you need.
How Much Burial Insurance Do I Need?
Once you understand the importance of buying burial insurance, you’ll want to figure out how much coverage you will need.
You can do so by doing the following:
- Determine how much insurance you need to cover your final expenses.
- Compute the cost of everything you need for the funeral and burial to determine how much insurance coverage you need. You should do some online research to determine the funeral cost in your area.
- Include other costs such as medical bills and any outstanding debts on the computation. Other end-of-life expenses you will need to consider include remaining medical bills, legal costs, living expenses, credit card bills, and other past-due accounts.
- Factor the inflation in your computation. The average funeral and burial cost is around $10,000, and it’s wise to plan on at least $15,000 to cover inflation.
Considering all these things will enable you to calculate how much burial insurance coverage you should buy.
Burial Insurance Costs
The average premium for seniors’ burial insurance is typical $50 per month, and the most common coverage is $10,000. You can pay your premium weekly, monthly, semi-annually, or annually. Some insurance companies give a discount if you pay your policy annually.
Your monthly premium amount might be higher or lower depending on some factors such as:
- Age
- Gender
- Face Amount
- Tobacco usage
- Health condition
- Pre-existing condition
AGE
Every life insurance company has a set price for every specific age. Some have a price for ages 50, 51, 52, and so on. While other companies set their price according to age band. For example, 50-55 have the same pricing, increasing when you reach 56.
If you buy burial insurance when you are 50, you’ll pay less than if you wait until you’re 80 before purchasing a policy. The older you are, the higher premium you’ll pay because you present a higher risk to the insurance companies.
Insurance providers charge higher premiums the older you get, but you lock in the premium at the age when you bought the policy, and the amount will remain that way for life.
FACE AMOUNT
The amount of coverage you need will also determine the amount you have to pay.
For example, your cost per $1,000 is $5.57 per month. If you want $10,000 in coverage, your total monthly premium would be $55.70 per month. The higher the face amount, the higher the premium will be.
TOBACCO USAGE
Each burial insurance company has a specific rate for tobacco and non-tobacco users. They have different premiums for each, and they usually charge higher to applicants who use tobacco.
Cigarette smoking is a major health risk that can significantly reduce life expectancy. This is the reason why tobacco users pay more for life insurance.
It is important to understand that some insurance companies give a non-tobacco rating if you chew, smoke cigars, smoke a pipe, or smoke e-cigarettes. Cigarette smoking has a tobacco rating.
YOUR HEALTH AND PRE-EXISTING CONDITION
Your health condition also factors in the cost of burial insurance. Your current health determines your risk classification. The riskier you are to insure, the more expensive the premium.
A pre-existing medical condition can cost you more because medical conditions can significantly affect your life expectancy. Some pre-existing conditions can be so high-risk that getting immediate coverage is impossible.
The best part about buying burial insurance in your 50s or younger is that you lock in a lower premium for the rest of your life. Being younger means, you are less likely to have any serious illness that could prevent you from qualifying for immediate coverage with no waiting period.
Serious illnesses usually manifest when you are older. So you’ll want to take immediate action and buy burial insurance protection to cover your final expenses. If you want an accurate quote, click on the instant quote tool on this page.
How Can Funeral Funds Help Me?
Finding a policy if you want to know how much insurance you need shouldn’t be a frustrating process; working with an independent agency like Funeral Funds will make the process easier and quicker.
Do you have a health history and want to know how much burial insurance I need? Let us help you; we will work with you side by side to find a plan that fits your needs.
We will work with you every step to find the plan that fits your financial requirements and budget. You don’t have to waste your precious time searching for multiple insurance companies anymore because we will do the dirty work for you.
We will shop your case at different insurance carriers and get you the best burial insurance at the best price.
We work with many A+ rated insurance carriers that specialize in covering high-risk clients like you. We will search all those companies to get the best rate. We will match you up with the best burial insurance company that gives the best rate.
We will assist you in securing the coverage you need at a rate you can afford. So, if you are looking for how much funeral insurance I need, how much final expense insurance I need, or how much life insurance I need. Fill out our quote form on this page or call us at 888) 862-9456, and we can give you an accurate quote.
Additional Questions & Answers On How Much Burial Insurance Do I Need?
Do I really need burial insurance?
This is a question we get a lot. Yes, you do need burial insurance. Here’s why:
- The average funeral costs between $8,000 and $12,000.
- Most people have less than $500 saved for their funerals.
- Social Security may only pay $255 towards your final expenses.
- Your family will be left with the burden of paying for your funeral.
Do people have enough life insurance?
Most people do not have enough life insurance to cover their final expenses and leave their loved ones with financial stability.
What are some of the benefits of having life insurance?
Some benefits of having life insurance include peace of mind, knowing your family will be taken care of financially in the event of your death, and leaving a legacy.
What is the right amount of insurance coverage?
That’s different for everyone, but here are some factors to consider:
Final Expenses: This includes the cost of your funeral, transportation, legal fees, and other end-of-life costs.
Debt Payoff: If you have credit card debt, a mortgage, or other loans, you may want your policy to cover these expenses so your family isn’t left with the bill.
How do I decide how much burial insurance I need?
Calculate your final expenses: This includes the cost of your funeral, transportation, legal fees, and any other end-of-life costs.
Add up your debts: If you have credit card debt, a mortgage, or other loans, you may want your policy to cover these expenses so your family doesn’t have to pay for them.
What is the average cost of life insurance?
The average cost of life insurance will vary based on age, gender, location, and health.
How much burial insurance does the average person need?
This is different for everyone, but most experts recommend purchasing enough burial insurance to cover funeral, burial, and final expenses.
What is the best way to calculate how much coverage you need?
The best way to calculate your coverage is to speak with a life insurance agent.
How much do you pay monthly for insurance?
This is different for everyone, but your life insurance premium will be based on age, gender, coverage amount, and health.
How much should I budget for insurance?
You should budget for insurance based on your needs and the coverage you want to ensure that your family is taken care of financially during your death.
How much should you budget monthly to cover your insurance?
Based on your needs, you should budget for insurance coverage to ensure that your family is taken care of financially during your death.
How is death benefit calculated?
The insurance company calculates the death benefit based on age, health, and the coverage amount.
How much does the average senior need for burial insurance?
This is different for everyone, but most experts recommend purchasing enough burial insurance to cover your funeral, burial, and final expenses and leaving something for your family.
What is the average cost of life insurance for a senior?
The average cost of life insurance will vary based on age, gender, location, coverage amount, and health.
What is the best way to find out how much life insurance you need?
The best way to calculate how much coverage you need is to consider your final expense needs and then speak with a life insurance agent from Funeral Funds.
How much burial insurance do I need for my spouse?
Most experts recommend purchasing enough burial insurance to cover your funeral, burial, and final expenses and leaving something for your family.
What is the average cost of life insurance for a couple?
The average cost of life insurance will vary based on age, coverage amount, gender, location, and health.
How much does a life insurance policy cost for a senior?
The average cost of life insurance for seniors will vary based on their age, health, gender, location, and the needed coverage.
What is the best way to get life insurance for seniors?
The best way to get life insurance for seniors is to speak with an experienced final-expense life insurance agent who will be able to find you a policy that fits your budget.
What is the best way to find affordable insurance?
The best way to find affordable insurance is to work with a qualified agent who can help you compare rates and find the best coverage for your needs.
How do I get started?
The best way to start is to talk to a licensed insurance agent at Funeral Funds, who can help you find out how much insurance you need and find something that fits your budget.
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