What is the National Funeral Trust?

The National Funeral Trust is an independent Trust Fund that was set up to protect funeral plan customers and funeral directors of Dignity (or to be precise, Dignity Pre-Arrangement Limited).

It ensures that, in the unlikely circumstance that Dignity went out of business at any point, their customers will still receive the funeral services they paid for.

The Trust was set up not long after the first funeral plan in the UK was sold by Dignity in 1985 and is regulated by the Funeral Planning Authority (FPA).

Dignity Pre-Arrangement Limited also provide plans through Simplicity Cremations as well as other subsidiaries owned by the Dignity group.

Reassured, an FCA registered and award-winning broker, can compare quotes and arrange funeral plans for Dignity or Simplicity Cremations on your behalf.

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Your money is in safe hands – funeral plans with Reassured

When you take out a funeral plan through Reassured, you can have peace of mind that your money is protected.

This is because the providers we work with are fully FPA regulated - which means that any money paid towards your plan is held securely in a Trust Fund or in a whole of life insurance policy.

When your funeral services are required, the funds are released and paid directly to the funeral director to cover the cost. Plus, the amount you pay for your funeral plan today remains fixed, no matter how much prices rise.

Funeral plans arranged through Reassured start from £16.51* a month.

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What does the Funeral Trust Fund do?

The Trust holds and manages all the money paid by funeral plan customers, on behalf of Dignity.

It’s wholly separate and independent of Dignity and is managed by independent trustees.

The Trust is regularly monitored and every year there’s a full audit and valuation of the assets held.

The Trust is also carefully invested to ensure that there’s always sufficient funds to cover every customer’s funeral, as well as the increased cost of funeral expenses in the future.

Types of investments include equities, fixed interest, property, corporate bonds and cash.

Why is there a Funeral Trust Fund?

Dignity Pre-Arrangement Limited is registered with the Funeral Planning Authority (FPA), currently the only funeral plan regulator in the UK.

The FPA require that funeral plan providers must protect their customers’ money by holding funds in either:

  • An independently managed Trust Fund or,
  • A whole of life insurance policy

The key difference is that the Trust Fund is specifically designed to ensure that the cost of the services included in each plan can be covered when the time comes.

For example, according to the National Funeral Trust annual report in 2019, the Trust held assets of approximately £3,299 per customer for their funeral, and the actual funeral costs averaged at £2,978.

Whereas an individual life insurance policy will have a fixed sum assured (pay out amount) paid to the trustees when it’s required.

A whole of life policy tends to be managed by an independent trustee for additional protection.

For example, the Co-op place funds into a whole of life policy with Royal London and this is managed by Link Corporate Trustees.

Compare funeral plans from Dignity, Simplicity Cremations and the Co-op by using our award-winning broker service.

Who manages the National Funeral Trust?

The Trust is managed by independent trustees and the investments are managed by several reputable investment firms.

See below the roles and responsibilities of the National Funeral Trust management:

The Managing Trustees

The Trustees have legal ownership of the Trust Fund and are ultimately responsible for the management and administration of the Trust.

The Custodian Trustee

The Custodian Trustee manages the Trust’s bank account in which the funds are held.

The Actuary

The Actuary carries out an annual audit and valuation of the Trust to ensure that it can meet all its future commitments.

Investment firms

Their role is to advise on investment strategy and to oversee the investments on behalf of the Trustees.

What other Funeral Trust Funds are there?

Other funeral plan providers use Trust Funds to hold their funeral plan customers’ money, as per FPA regulations.

Here are some examples:

  • Golden Leaves - The Golden Leaves Trust
  • Pure Cremation - Pure Cremation Trust
  • Prosperous Life - Great British Funeral Trust and Pride Planning Trust
  • Open Prepaid Funerals - The Open Trust Fund
  • Golden Charter – The Golden Charter Trust
  • Empathy UK - The Empathy UK Trust

These Trust Funds all work in the same way - they are completely separate legal entities to the plan provider and they are managed and assessed by independent trustees.

Compare funeral plans with Reassured

Reassured is able to compare multiple prepaid funeral plans from some of the UK’s largest providers on your behalf.

As there are a variety of different plans to choose from, we can help compare the plan features and prices so that you can find the best plan for you and your family.

Don’t forget, all plans arranged through us freeze today’s funeral prices by guaranteeing your funeral services, no matter when they are needed.

Not only that, but you can have confidence your future payments are protected with the regulations set by the FPA.

Make the most of our FEE-FREE award-winning service by getting in touch today.

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Sources:

*£16.51 a month is for the Simplicity Cremations Lily Plan, which is for a direct cremation only, paid by monthly instalments with 10 years payment term (total amount payable £1,981.80). Prices correct as of 20th November 2020

The National Funeral Trust Annual Report 2019 https://www.dignityfunerals.co.uk/funeral-plans/media/11001/nft-annual-report-2019.pdf

https://funeralplanningauthority.co.uk/regulations/

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All of the funeral plans we provide are fully regulated by the Funeral Planning Authority (FPA) ensuring you and your money are protected.

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