comps arts 1

any item of service or merchandise described to a purchaser as a "cash advance," "accommodation," "cash disbursement," or similar item. A cash advance item is also any item obtained from a third party and paid for by the funeral provider on the purchaser's behalf. Cash advance items may include, but are not limited to: cemetery or crematory services; pallbearers; public transportation; clergy honoraria; flowers; musicians or singers; nurses; obituary notices; gratuities and death certificates. [16 CFR 453.1(b)]

Cash Advance items

charge, fee or surcharge applied to consumers who purchase their casket from a source other than the funeral provider. (These fees are NOT allowed by the FTC Funeral Rule)

Casket handling fees

situation requiring immediate action or urgency; FTC recognizes that funeral provider might embalm without permission. (see NFDA FTC Amended Funeral Rule Compliance Manual and 453.5(a)(3) for examples)

Exigent circumstances

agency of the federal government created in 1914 to promote free and fair competition by prevention of trade restraints, price fixing, false advertising and other unfair methods of competition

Federal Trade Commission (FTC)

none of the 16 items required to be separately itemized on the GPL can be listed as free or no charge. Items not required by the rule can be listed as free

Free items

ceremony commemorating the deceased without the body present. [16 CFR 453.1(1)] (see also SS 1-7)

Memorial Service

basic services is the only fee which the consumer cannot decline (unless state or local law requires otherwise). Funeral Provider should recover expenses for services, facilities or unallocated overhead in this charge

Non-declinable service fee

basic services, not to be included in prices of other categories in Section 453.2(b)(4), that are furnished by a funeral provider in arranging any funeral, such as conducting the arrangements conference, planning the funeral, obtaining necessary permits, and placing obituary notices. [16 CFR 453.1(p)]

Services of Funeral Director and Staff

itemized written statement provided for retention to each person who arranges a funeral or other disposition. It must include the goods and services selected and prices paid for each, itemization of cash advance items and the total cost

Statement of Funeral Goods and Services Selected

List the 6 Disclosures required on the GPL

1. The consumer’s right to select only the goods and services desired 2. Embalming 3. Alternative containers for direct cremation 4. The basic services fee 5. The Casket Price List 6. The Outer Burial Container Price List

There are 3 Disclosures on the Statement of Funeral Goods and Services Selected and must be word-for-word as set forth by the FTC

1. Charges are only for those items that you selected or that are required. If we are required by law or by a cemetery or crematory to use any items, we will explain the reasons in writing below.

2. If you selected a funeral that may require embalming, such as a funeral with viewing, you may have to pay for embalming. You do not have to pay for embalming you did not approve if you selected arrangements such as a direct cremation or immediate burial. If we charged for embalming, we will explain why below.

3. If the funeral establishment charges a fee for purchasing a cash advance item, or it receives and retains a rebate, commission, or trade or volume discount for a cash advance item, the establishment must include the following disclosure on the Statement: We charge you for our services in obtaining: _________________________________

First disclosure of the GPL is what?

Disclosure 1 - Right of Selection: The goods and services shown below are those we can provide to our customers. You may choose only the items you desire. However, any funeral arrangements you select will include a charge for our basic services and overhead. If legal or other requirements mean you must buy any items you did not specifically ask for, we will explain the reason in writing on the statement we provide describing the funeral goods and services you selected

What is the Basic Services disclosure?

Disclosure 2 – Basic Services Fee: This fee for our basic service and overhead will be added to the total cost of the funeral arrangements you select. (This fee is already included in our charges for direct cremations, immediate burials, and forwarding or receiving remains.)

For 3rd party crematories, can the charge be a cash advance item or listed in the price for the direct cremation?

YES

What is the cremation disclosure?

Disclosure 3 – Direct Cremation If you want to arrange a direct cremation, you can use an alternative container. Alternative containers encase the body and can be made of materials like fiberboard or composition materials (with or without an outside covering). The containers we provide are (specify)

What is the embalming disclosure?

Disclosure 4 – [Except in certain special cases,] Embalming is not required by law. Embalming may be necessary, however, if you select certain funeral arrangements, such as a funeral with viewing. If you do not want embalming, you usually have the right to choose an arrangement, such as direct cremation or immediate burial, that does not require you to pay for it

What is the Outer Burial Container disclosure?

Disclosure 6 – [In most areas of the country}, State or local law does not require that you buy a container to surround the casket in the grave. However, many cemeteries require that you have such a container so that the grave will not sink in. Either a grave liner or a burial vault will satisfy these requirements

List the 16 Required Itemized Prices on the GPL

1. Forwarding of remains to another funeral home

2. Receiving remains from another funeral home

3. Direct cremation

4. Immediate burial

5. Basic services of funeral director and staff, and overhead

6. Transfer of remains to funeral home

7. Embalming

8. Other preparation of the body

9. Use of facilities and staff for viewing

10. Use of facilities and staff for funeral ceremony

11. Use of facilities and staff for memorial service

12. Use of equipment and staff for graveside service

13. Hearse

14. Limousine

15. Either individual casket prices or the range of casket prices that appear on the Casket Price List

16. Either individual outer burial container prices or the range of outer burial container prices that appear on the Outer Burial Container Price List

Should a “Disclaimer of Warranties” should be placed on price lists?

YES

Is it a violation of the Funeral Rule to embalm without permission?

NO… The violation occurs if you charge for an embalming that you did not get permission for

The Rule does not apply to pre-need contracts before…

1984

Example: Mr. Green made pre-need arrangements in 1980; he dies in 1994. At the time of his death, his wife wants to change the casket specified in the pre-need contract and to add visitation hours. Because Mrs. Green is changing the contract after 1984, the funeral provider must…

comply with all of the Rule’s requirements, including giving Mrs. Green a General Price List, showing her a Casket Price List, and providing her with an itemized Statement of Goods and Services Selected

There are 6 disclosures required on the GPL. They are…

1. The consumer’s right to select only the goods and services desired 2. Embalming 3. Alternative containers for direct cremation 4. The basic services fee 5. The Casket Price List 6. The Outer Burial Container Price List

Can any of the 16 items required by the rule to be separately itemized on the GPL can be listed as Free or No Charge. [Items not required by the rule can be listed as Free or No Charge]?

NO

What is the penalty per violation of the Funeral Rule?

$41,484 (this price changes so just know it is over $40,000)

Who is required to comply with the FTC Funeral Rule?

Everyone who sells funeral goods and services (Those selling only funeral goods and not services, such as a casket store, are not required to comply with the FTC)

Mr. Stone made pre-need arrangements but his wife wants to change the casket and services. Which of the following is true?

You must give a GPL before discussions and Casket Price List before she looks at caskets

What is the first required disclosure on the GPL?

Right of Selection

What is the only fee that the consumer has to pay the funeral home (non-declinable)?

Basic services fee

Which of the following statements is true regarding what the Funeral Director must tell the family about embalming?

They may have to pay for embalming for a funeral with viewing

Where is the Right of Selection to be placed on the GPL?

Immediately above the prices of the goods and services

If you provide a Casket Price List, what disclosure must be stated on the GPL?

A complete price list will be provided at the funeral home

Which of the following statements is correct?

Package prices must include itemized prices of those goods

Which of the following items on the GPL does the Rule require to include the Basic Services Fee in the individual price?

Forwarding remains, receiving remains, direct cremation, & immediate burial

If the funeral provider uses a third party crematory, which of the following statements is true?

The cremation charge may be listed as a cash advance item

What must the funeral provider make clear on the GPL for immediate burials?

The purchaser may provide the casket

If the State of Tennessee (or any State) provided an overall level of protection that is as great as, or greater than the protection provided by the Funeral Rule, which of the following agencies could apply to the Commission for a statewide exemption?

Tennessee State Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers

According to the Funeral Rule, where are charges for sheltering of remains to be listed?

The Basic Services Fee

If the consumer provides their own casket purchased elsewhere, what can the funeral home do?

Tell the consumer that you do not carry a warranty should anything break

Which of the following statements is true regarding Transfer of remains to the funeral home?

The funeral home can choose any pricing method

Which of the following statements is true regarding “Embalming” according to the Funeral Rule?

You must tell consumers that the law does not require embalming

When charging for facilities and staff for a viewing, funeral, or memorial service, how should the charges be listed?

List the charge for facilities and staff separately only if these services are held away from the funeral home

Where would the charge be located on the GPL for washing and disinfecting a body that is NOT being embalmed?

Itemized under “Other Preparation of the Body”

When can a funeral home charge separately for a graveside service?

If there is no funeral ceremony anywhere else

How many disclosures are required on the Statement of Funeral Goods and Services Selected?

3

Which of the following are disclosures that must be placed on the Statement of Funeral Goods and Services Selected?

1. Legal Requirements 2. Embalming 3. Cash Advance Items

If the funeral home receives a rebate from a florist or any business for cash advance items ordered for the family?

The funeral home must disclose the amount of the rebate and inform the family that the rebate was not passed on to them

How must prices for goods and services be listed on the Statement of Funeral Goods and Services Selected?

All services and goods must be itemized even if packaged

The Basic Service Fee must be included in which of the following services and cannot be charged separately?

1. forwarding remains 2. receiving remains 3. immediate burial 4. direct cremation

If a family selects a funeral with a viewing, what may the funeral director explain to the family?

Embalming will temporarily preserve the body

According to the FTC, Alternative Cremation Containers must?

Have no fixed interiors

A funeral home requires the purchase of one of their caskets before they will provide services. This type of requirement is called a?

Tying Arrangement

Which one of the following is NOT one of the FTC’s 16 Mandatory Goods and Services?

Urn price range

According to the FTC Funeral Rule, funeral homes that DO NOT offer direct cremations?

Do not have to list an alternative cremation container on the Casket Price List

The FTC Funeral Rule states that, concerning Cash Advance Items, funeral homes?

Do not have to tell people how much they marked up Cash Advance Items

Which one of the following would be an exception to the FTC Funeral Rules prohibition against tying arrangements?

Non-declinable Basic Service Fee

The FTC Funeral Rule requires that the General Price List contain all the following EXCEPT?

the reason for embalming

Which of the following must comply with the FTC Funeral Rule?

All Funeral Providers

Which of the following is NOT one of the six disclosures required on your GPL?

Transportation Service Fee

Which of the following is NOT one of the required itemized prices on the GPL?

Use of facilities and staff for a reception

Which of the following is NOT one of the special groups you are allowed to have an alternative price list?

Civic Organizations

Which of the following is NOT true regarding giving the consumer a copy of the Statement of Funeral Goods and Services Selected?

It is not required to give each consumer a completed Statement at the end of the arrangement discussion

The embalming disclosure on the Statement of Funeral Goods and Services Selected includes:

You do not have to pay for embalming if you did not approve … If we charge for embalming, we will explain why … The form should leave enough space for you to explain the reason for embalming

The Cash Advance Items disclosure on the Statement of Funeral Goods and Services Selected says if you charge for purchasing a cash advance item, or if you receive and retain a rebate, commission, or trade or volume discount for a cash advance item, you must make the following statement

We charge you for our services in obtaining: (specify cash advance items)

What are the six areas that The Funeral Rule specifically prohibits misrepresentations?

1. Embalming 2. Casket for Direct Cremation 3. Outer Burial Container 3. Legal and Cemetery Requirements 4. Preservative and Protective Value Claims 5. Cash Advance Items

cremated remains are cast from a private plane

Aerial Scattering

releasing cremated remains to the wind

Casting (Scattering)

originated in ancient Rome as excavated cemeteries cut out of soft rock for the tombs of wealthy Christians; later became a place for religious rites to avoid persecution (H70)

Catacombs

a structure, room, or space in a mausoleum or other building containing niches or recesses used to hold cremated remains

Columbarium

the first cremation of the day (the retort is cool because it has not been used)

Cool Cremation

founded in 1913, is an international organization of cemeterians, cremationists, funeral directors, industry suppliers and consultants. was originally formed to promote cremation as a modern, safe and hygienic way of dealing with a dead human body

Cremation Association of North America

the total mechanical unit for the cremation process (CANA definition.); retort designed specifically for the incineration of human remains (NFDA definition); the burning chamber in a crematory (ABFSE definition)

Cremator

a building that houses a retort

Crematory (Crematorium)

the authorizing agent relieves the funeral home of liability of misidentification and any errors in the information provided by signing the cremation authorization form. The funeral director is relying on the information provided by the authorizing agent as being accurate

Indemnification

funeral rites with the body not present

Memorial service

a recess or space in a columbarium used for the permanent placing of cremated remains

Niche

receptacle for communal placement of cremated remains

Ossuary

where the actual cremation takes place within the retort

Primary chamber

must be capable of maintaining an interior temperature of 40 - 50⁰ F while loaded with maximum number of remains for which it is designed. (Fires of Change textbook, pg. 86 states 40⁰ F is suggested; the NFDA Cremation for FS Professionals, recommends 40 - 50⁰.)

Refrigeration unit

the burning chamber in a crematory

Retort

a section in a cemetery set aside for the scattering of cremated human remains

Scattering Garden

Vertical passage (chimney) which is the final discharge point where the products of combustion are released into the atmosphere

Stack

a device for measuring the temperature in the retort

Thermocouple

a small headstone, set above ground, with a slightly slanting top

Bevel Top Marker

chamber within a mausoleum or building structure, usually constructed of reinforced concrete, can be assembled above or below ground

Mausoleum crypt

an arrangement made by the cemetery whereby funds are set aside, the income from which is used to maintain the cemetery indefinitely

Perpetual care

The government will pay for the marker of an honorably discharged veteran but not what?

setting in a private cemetery

An arrangement made by the cemetery whereby funds are set aside, the income from which is used to maintain the cemetery indefinitely?

perpetual care

A Board of Commissioners disinterred bodies in a town cemetery because the graves were unpaid. They had the bodies reburied in the free section of the cemetery. The Board of Commissioners were found?

guilty of unauthorized disinterments

A son that paid for his father’s funeral requested that his father’s remains be moved to a cemetery closer to his home. His father had a surviving spouse. The funeral director should..?

Not participate until the disinterment has been legally authorized

A widow sought to have her husband’s remains removed from her in-laws’ property. The evidence showed that the parents of the decedent and the wife were very hostile to each other. The court ruled what?

that the widow could have the body disinterred

An Orthodox Jewish cemetery sought to prevent the decedent’s next of kin from removing the decedent’s remains to a Reformed Jewish Cemetery. The court ruled what?

that the next of kin could have the body moved to another cemetery

Oversize retorts are used for bodies at what weight?

300 – 599 lbs.

If the crematory is offsite, does the funeral director have the right to ask for periodic visits?

YES

Should the funeral home ask for compliance records from the crematory?

YES

Can cremains be co-mingled?

NO (In Tennessee must have permission from authorizing agent)

Define cremation?

Reduction of a dead human body to inorganic bone fragments by intense heat in a specifically designed retort or chamber

If the temperature is below 1400 or above 1800 F what can happen?

you may have visible emissions.

What type of waste is cremated remains classified?

Type 4

What type of equipment is a crematory classified?

Class 6 (VI)