Simple Funeral

We understand that some families may wish to keep things simple or just keep the cost down, which is why we offer a Simple Funeral. There are some restrictions, but our Simple Funeral allows us to provide a caring and quality service at a fair cost.

Our Simple Funeral with Cortege and Celebration of Life Service includes:

• Provision of all funeral director services to make the funeral arrangements
• Completion of all documents and liaison with all third parties
• Advice, support and guidance
• Visiting the private chapel of rest - due to the coronavirus pandemic and to follow government advice on social distancing, we can only allow a maximum of 2 people visiting the chapel of rest at any one time by a pre-arranged appointment
• Bringing the person who has died into our care, within a 50-mile radius
• Care and preparation of the deceased
• A small funeral service - for everyone's safety during the coronavirus pandemic, the number of attendees should be kept as low as possible to maintain social distancing measures^*
• A Simple coffin - alternative coffins available at an additional cost
• Hearse and personnel needed for the funeral
• Flexible funeral cortege (tailored route up to 15 miles)
• A Celebration of Life Service
• An optional online tribute page, enabling you to share funeral details and securely accept ‘in memory’ charity donations

^*Every venue may have different rules on how many are allowed at a funeral service. Your local funeral director will be able to let you know how many attendees are allowed at your chosen funeral venue.

Without any additional services, a Simple Funeral will cost £1,895 in England and Wales, and is £1,675 in Scotland, not including third party fees.

What isn't included in the Co-op Simple Funeral?

• There will be no choice of the day and time of the funeral and certain days and times may be excluded
• Bringing the deceased into our care beyond a 50 mile radius (an additional mileage charge will apply)
• Embalming
• Viewing the deceased outside of normal working hours
• A separate funeral service or celebration taking place before proceeding to the local crematorium or cemetery
• Additional transport for attendees of the funeral
• Third party fees (see below)

How much does a Simple Funeral cost?

The cost of the Simple Funeral (including additional cortege and Celebration of Life Service) is £2,745 in England and Wales, and is £2,525 in Scotland, excluding third party fees.

How to pay for a Simple Funeral

Once all funeral arrangements have been made, your local funeral director will let you know how much the total funeral cost will be. You can pay at the funeral home, at a bank or post office, and we accept cash, credit and debit card payments.

The funeral is paid in 2 parts:

1. You will need to pay a minimum of 50% of the total estimated funeral cost within 48 hours of making the funeral arrangements.

2. For everything else, we’ll send you an invoice after the funeral. This final payment must be made within 28 days from the date of invoice.

Help with funeral costs

Coronavirus related deaths

If your loved one has died from coronavirus, you may qualify for support from Co-op Funeralcare's Hardship Fund.

Government help

If you can’t afford to pay for the funeral, let your funeral director know as soon as possible, as there may be support from the government available to you.

Pay in monthly instalments

If you’d prefer to pay for the funeral in instalments, you may be eligible to apply for a funeral loan through our partner Funeral Safe. You can find details on loan amounts and repayments, eligibility and details on how to apply here.

Third party fees

Third party fees are essential services delivered by others that we will manage on your behalf such as crematorium fees, gravediggers fees or payments made to a minister or celebrant. These will need to be paid at the time of making the funeral arrangements.

On average last year (2019) our clients paid £1,157 in third party fees but this is a national average and may not reflect the price you might pay in your local area. To find out how much a Simple Funeral will cost at your local Co-op Funeralcare, as well as an estimate of third party costs in your area, use our funeral cost calculator.

If you'd like more flexibility with the arrangements, take a look at our Traditional Funeral. Or, you can compare all of our funeral services.