Just been a report on TF1 about these assurance obsèque deals currently on the market here. A lot of them apparently do not pay out what you think, the small print has hidden clauses and with some, the monthly fixed-until-you die payments tend to be nearly twice what it would cost without insurance if you live a long life. Obviously no one knows their life expectancy, but be warned some policies do not pay out what you might think and the Répression des Fraudes has now got involved.
yes, it’s interesting stuff… which I shall keep my beady eye on !
We have a set sum put aside… but I’ll be reviewing that soon… I think it’s about 5k for each of us, which is currently sufficient 
I suspect that most of these insurance policies, aimed at older demographics, are really poor value for most people and have so many get-out clauses that you either don’t get paid out or pay so much in that you lose money overall.
A figure of €4k was mentioned as an average cremation funeral costing. Obviously burials are going to be much more expensive plus the cost of the caveaux and ongoing fees every so many years. I quite like the idea of not having anyone at a funeral, the body just taken and cremated and ashes returned to the family afterwards and I’d rather the kids had the money instead, I won’t be caring much.
Yes, thats what the fraudes dept are investigating. I did see some mention of getting out of paying if the deceased had had radiation or cancer treatments and other medical issues, all hidden in the smallprint that no ones takes any notice. I also wondered at what happens if these funeral companies go out of business before any claims are made, who pays up then??
Yes I think they are. This is UK advice, but the lawyer lady who drafted my will told me that the funeral costs can be paid out of the estate (even before probate), assuming it has some ready cash in it, so there’s no point in paying for funeral insurance cover unless you are likely to leave insufficient money to your heirs.
Funeral costs are also allowable as a deduction before IHT is calculated.
Whether that is the same in France I don’t know.
That’s what my mother requested. She’s always been a solo traveller, so seemed ok to us that she headed off to the crematorium alone. We then had a very jolly tea party in the village hall for all her friends.
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So did we, with our individual LEPs, though we didn’t realise it at the time, and I think I know where you got that figure of 5K from. As explained to me after Fran died by the Notaire, it is the maximum allowed by law to be the debt of the deceased (as @ChrisMann says) rather than the survivor, thus her funeral expenses (about €3,500) were billed to, and paid directly from, Fran’s LEP, the balance of which is still frozen but will eventually come to me, not her children, as with everything else when the Notaire has finished his work. This is because of our Donation Entre Epoux agreement which gives me the use of everything for the rest of my life, unless I sell the property. Good job I don’t want to otherwise I would be paralysed for buying anywhere else if I did.
I was told that cremation was more expensive than burial and from what you have said, my experience bears this out as the figure I mentioned above for burial is somewhat less then the figure you mention. The caveaux is an expense not paid with cremation, but ongoing fees depends on each individual Commune. I paid about €250 I think for the plot, and that is in perpetuity, nothing to pay more before the last trump. (No not that one 
)
I think it is no coincidence that our most joked about funeral expense over the years was that to bury us only took a journey of 500 metres for the hearse as opposed to some 60 kms to the nearest crem. We often used to say that we could almost roll down the hill to the cemetary, much cheaper than a car ride to the other side of Perigueux. 
As an aside to all this, I have received a letter from the state pension people in Newcastle to the effect that I may be eligible for a higher pension as a widower as long as I send them our marriage certificate. Or rather a photocopy as long as it is stamped and signed by the Notaire. To this end I have a rdv on Monday with him, at which time I will ask if he knows when the balance of her LEP will be released to me, as I then can use it to pay for the headstone after it is in place. Legally that is not Fran’s debt, but mine. Fair enough, it is a double so to be shared by both of us. One reason why I am not too troubled by the mason’s dragging of his feet as he doesn’t want a penny 'till it’s done.
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Does that cover getting out of death, if so I’m in!
I don’t normally take any notice of tv adverts, but I inadvertently saw one the other day during Countdown on C4 for funeral/ cremation insurance (assurance 
) that offered a money back guarantee. Just wondering how that would work 
No, you just need to die in the correct manner.
this thread has got me looking deeper into “forthcoming events”.
the 5k relates to the average cost of funerals of differing sorts, which we have been slightly involved in here in France over the years…
anyway… regarding France: I now discover that if one is cremated, one’s ashes can be scattered at sea… hurrah… that would suit me … swishing around the world’s oceans … marvellous…
all I need to do is check the “fee” charged by the Group/Association who do this, they are the ones who rescue people in trouble in our coastal waters.
So, if anyone has experience/information re this… please let me know…
on the other hand… I do have some friends who own boats of various sizes… one of them might like to “do the deed”
Si vous disposez de votre propre embarcation, il est possible de réaliser vous-même la dispersion des cendres en mer. Pour cela, il vous faudra respecter les obligations suivantes :
- Remplir une déclaration à la mairie de la commune du lieu de naissance du défunt, précisant la date et le lieu de la dispersion ; Déclarer la dispersion à la mairie de la commune du port d’attache du bateau ; Respecter les différentes obligations de distance (dispersion ou immersion) et le caractère biodégradable de l’urne.
Vous devrez présenter les pièces justificatives suivantes :
- Certificat d’incinération du défunt ;
- Copie de l’attestation de crémation ;
- Copie de l’acte de décès.
My OH was always worried about scattering his ashes at sea, he couldn’t swim he said and didn’t want to drown!
Oh dear, not thread drift, but straddling 2 threads. 