The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) created the Funeral Rule in the early 1980s in order to improve the funeral market and, more importantly, to protect consumers. The Rule’s goals were to “lower existing barriers to price competition in the funeral market and to facilitate informed consumer choice.” By requiring funeral providers to give consumers clear and accurate price information, the FTC hoped to protect consumers from being taken advantage of while in a vulnerable state. Further, the Rule prohibits providers from making certain misrepresentations to consumers and sets out other unfair or deceptive practices funeral providers may not use.
The Rule was passed due to the sensitive nature of funeral industry services. When individuals contact funeral homes, it is usually because a loved one has passed away. In their state of grief, they must deal with their loved one’s remains, plan a funeral, and make many other overwhelming decisions. In the FTC’s eyes, this made consumers especially vulnerable to exploitation and left consumers operating “under a large burden of ignorance.” The overall goal of implementing the Rule was to promote transparency between the funeral industry and consumers. The FTC wanted consumers to be able to make informed decisions during this difficult time.
It is important for consumers to know what they are required by law to purchase, what is just an additional cost, and what their options are when it comes to honoring their loved ones. The FTC found that there were three reasons for the Rule: (1) the decisions regarding funeral goods and services are made when the consumer is in emotional distress; (2) consumers are not knowledgeable about the funeral industry; and (3) the decisions are costly ones which must be made within a time restraint. When the Rule was passed, the FTC believed that consumers had inaccurate information on prices and services and were unlikely to seek such information in a state of grief and distress. Consumers, unaware of what they wanted, were subject to funeral directors misrepresenting the law and “induc[ing] consumers to purchase goods and services they d[id] not desire.”
Specifically, the Rule prohibits funeral homes from “misrepresenting legal, crematory, and cemetery requirements,” some of which include embalming for a fee without permission, requiring the purchase of a casket for direct cremation, requiring that consumers buy certain goods or services as a condition for others, and engaging in any other deceptive or unfair practices. The FTC believed the Rule would “increase[] consumer satisfaction by lowering prices and reducing the quantities of undesired goods purchased.” However, there are disagreements in the industry about the Rule’s place today, as some studies have shown that consumers are generally satisfied with their purchases and appreciate the guidance from the funeral director.
Recently, the FTC has considered changing the Rule. Now that the FTC is considering a change, proponents of the Rule in its current form are clashing with advocates who desire reform.
Some advocates argue that the Rule must be updated in order to more accurately reflect how consumers receive information today; still, others worry about the unintended consequences that could come with these alterations. Specifically, some funeral industry providers are resistant to change and argue that consumers are already satisfied with the death care they receive, the Rule is still adequately protecting consumers, and more harm than good could come from updating the Rule due to the unintended consequences of federal regulation.
The specific changes the FTC is considering include requiring online disclosures of price information, including new forms of human disposition in the regulation, and updating the requirements of General Price Lists (GPLs) to address common issues. While all these possible changes have prompted conversations within the funeral industry, the FTC and consumers are mainly concerned with the requirement of online price disclosures. Therefore, this Essay will focus on the possible change to the Funeral Rule requiring funeral service providers to disclose their prices online.
