Financing

Should arrangements be paid in advance?
There is no correct answer to this question because each individual's finances are unique. There are many different classifications of society with a broad range of economic resources. It is up to the individual to decide if it 'makes sense' to fund their arrangements in advance.

There are some advantages to establishing a mortuary trust to fund an advance plan.

  1. You make the decisions and set your own limits
  2. Funding is in place and your services are paid for regardless of when death occurs
  3. The financial burden on family members is eliminated
  4. Peace of mind knowing that a plan has been established

When an individual pays Kiley Funeral Home in advance for services, we are required by law to set up a mortuary trust (Title 32, Chapter 21, Sec. 1401). The funds must be deposited into a financial institution (most commonly in a bank or credit union) in the State of Maine within 10 days. The funds must be placed into an account that draws interest. Once funds have been deposited, a confirmation statement will be mailed to the contact person on the account. Once the trust is established, the funeral home has no access to the funds until the death of the individual, except to transfer the funds to another savings institution or to close the trust upon written instruction of the individual setting up the trust.

In some states, advance funeral plans are funded by insurance sold by the funeral home. In Maine, this is illegal and can be considered a conflict of interest because some insurance products are commission-based where the funeral director selling the plan is paid a commission based on the total dollar amount of the service. It is possible to fund an advance plan with insurance in the State of Maine, but it must be done through an insurance agent.

Kiley Funeral Home holds all mortuary trust receipts in Merrill Merchants Bank, a local bank. The trust assets are professionally managed by F. A. Peabody Administrative Services www.fapeabody.com, a Maine company based in Houlton, Maine with experience in mortuary trust management.