There a number of different ways you can pay for a Variety Funerals™ cremation when a person has passed away:
To help you find the answer to your question we have divided the frequently asked questions into seven categories:
When you purchase a Funeral from Variety Funerals™ for a person that has passed away, payment in full is required before the cremation can take place. £300 is payable to appoint Variety Funerals™, the balance due is to be paid within 7 days thereafter.
Credit or Debit Card
The most popular choice is to pay by credit or debit card (Visa or MasterCard). Your purchase is protected and we do not store your card details. Currently, we do not accept American Express.
Bank Transfer
Your Variety Funerals™ invoice includes our bank details if you wish to pay by bank transfer. The majority of UK banks provide online banking that support same day ‘faster’ payments.
Deceased Bank Account
Funeral costs are not part of probate which is why the deceased bank account can be used to pay for their funeral. You can use the debit card of the deceased or if the account has been frozen you can take your Variety Funerals™ invoice to a branch of the deceased’s bank and the bank will pay the Variety Funerals™ invoice directly to Variety Funerals™ (providing there are sufficient funds in the account). Some banks will also allow you to send the Variety Funerals™ invoice by post or email to them.
Insurance
When the deceased has an insurance policy in place please contact their insurance company to find out what their procedure is for you to claim. Typically you will need to fill out a form and provide the insurance company with a death certificate and Variety Funerals™ invoice.
The insurance company will pay Variety Funerals™ directly or pay the beneficiary of the policy to then pay Variety Funerals™ instead.
Funeral Finance
Funeral Safe is a finance company that specialise in providing finance for funerals.
Funeral Safe Limited provides finance from £499 – £7,500 from 10.75% to 24.9% APR over terms of 12 – 60 months.
All loan agreements are subject to status, terms and conditions as set out in the financial conduct authority and credit consumer association guidelines. Loan agreements are only valid once permission has been granted via signature or e-signature.
Funeral Safe pay Variety Funerals™ directly.
Department of Work and Pensions (DWP)
It is the circumstances of the person paying for the funeral and NOT that of the deceased that determines the eligibility for a funeral expenses payment to be claimed from the DWP.
Variety Funerals require families to pay for the funeral packages independent of DWP claims as per our Terms and Conditions.
You can get up to £1,000 towards Variety Funerals™ fees, in addition to payment of the cremation fees and doctors fees.
The Funeral Expenses Payment is paid into your bank, building society or credit union account if you’ve already paid Variety Funerals™.
The money will be paid directly to Variety Funerals™ if you have not paid Variety Funerals™.
You might be able to get a Funeral Expenses Payment if you are the partner of the deceased.
You might be able to get a Funeral Expenses Payment if the deceased did not have a partner when they died and you are a close friend or relative.
If a close relative of the deceased (such as a sibling or parent) is in work or not getting a qualifying benefit, you might not get a Funeral Expenses Payment
Benefits you must get:
You (or your partner) must get one or more of the following:
- Universal Credit
- Income Support
- Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- Pension Credit
- Housing Benefit
- The disability or severe disability element of Working Tax Credit
- Child Tax Credit
For further information contact the DWP Bereavement Service by telephone: 0800 151 2012 (or 0800 731 0453 for a Welsh language service). The helpline is open Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. More information can be found on the government website.
Crowd Funding
There are a number of websites where you can set up a crowd funding page to raise money for a funeral including gofundme.com and justgiving.com.
Typically crowd funding websites will pay the money directly to you for you to pay Variety Funerals™.
Charities
Funeral costs can present families with unexpected bills they may not have had time to budget for. There a number of charities and grants available to support families to help pay for funeral costs.
Turn2us
Turn2us is a national charity providing practical help to people who are struggling financially. Turn2us provides a grant search facility.
Friends of the Elderly (FOTE)
Friends of the Elderly provides grants to older people over State Pension age, living in England or Wales, who have a low income and savings of less than £4,000.
Paying for a Pre-paid Funeral Plan
A Variety pre-paid funeral plan is paid for in one payment.
All of our customers benefit from Variety VIP that includes Exceptional Service 24-hours a day, read what out customers have to say:
Sally is an excellent asset to the company. Everything was explained clearly for exactly what I wanted. A definite 5 star +… Thank you.
I recently used Variety Funeral and couldn’t have asked for a more supportive experience. From the very beginning, the team was incredibly helpful, kind, and understanding. They guided me through every step of the process, keeping me fully informed along the way.
I would highly recommend variety funerals to anyone needing funeral services. I found them very helpful and informative in helping me decide the best plan for me.
Liz Bowen was absolutely amazing. It was a pleasure booking our funeral a job I wasn’t looking forward to. We had a good laugh with her a fantastic lady. Thank you so much.
Very easy process to go through, Everything explained and Documents also sent to Family informing them of my plan
My Wife lost her brother recently and it was made more difficult because of the distance from the Northeast to Aylesbury. We phoned variety funerals who saved us all the stress.Every thing we asked of them was done to perfection. Thank you variety Funerals for the professional service. Michael Maddison.
Very polite, friendly and helpful. They went through the process and was very understanding of our needs. Would highly recommend
I phoned up with so many questions and ended up feeling confident and happy that the plan I have decided on is exactly what I wanted. Variety is an exceptional and caring organisation and the price is good too!!
The whole process was quick and easy. Excellent customer service from start to finish. Policy documents arrived instantly via email followed by hard copy the next day. Best of all the price! Completely recommended.
They have been helpfull in every way posabull i have nothing negative to say about them at all thay have been amazining and caring and respectfull from nara steeple and the littel voise in the back grownd thank you ever so much
Fantastic service, the team was in contact every step of the way, to inform us of what was happening to Dad. We even got a message on the morning of Dad’s cremation. Local crematorium to us was used, and Dad’s ashes were presented to us beautifully.
Excellent customer service. The family was kept up to date at all times with the progress of our sister’s cremation. All staff gave empathy throughout the process. We would certainly recommend their services and the price was reasonable.
