Resources · Funeral Rule
Funeral Rule Phone Checklist
A practical, scannable checklist for giving funeral home price information over the phone in line with the FTC Funeral Rule. Built for the person who actually answers the call — at 9 a.m. or 2 a.m.
Operational education — not legal advice.
This is operational education, not legal advice. The Funeral Rule is enforced by the FTC and its application can depend on your specific situation and state law. Always consult qualified counsel or current FTC guidance for compliance decisions.
Why phone price calls matter
The phone is where price compliance is most often tested.
A family comparing options, a pre-planner gathering information, an executor settling an estate — many people prefer to start with a phone call. The FTC's guidance indicates that funeral providers must give price information over the telephone when asked, which makes the phone a frequent and important point of compliance.
In November 2024, the FTC released a report on an undercover Funeral Rule phone sweep. FTC staff reviewed calls to 278 funeral providers. The staff could not obtain after-hours price information from 73 providers — about 26% of all providers called. The report also noted that many providers required multiple calls or callbacks, and that some gave estimates or ranges rather than actual prices.
The takeaway is operational, not alarmist: pricing questions arrive often, they arrive at all hours, and a calm, consistent, ready answer protects both the family and the firm. The checklist below is a working tool for getting there.
FTC: Staff report on the undercover Funeral Rule phone sweep (Nov 2024)
The checklist
Seven steps for handling price calls well.
Work through these with whoever answers your phone. They are drawn from the FTC's published guidance and from how a calm, well-run firm handles a pricing call.
Be ready to give price information when a caller asks.
The FTC's "Complying with the Funeral Rule" guidance indicates that funeral providers must give price information over the telephone when someone asks for it. Treat every pricing question as a legitimate request — not a hurdle to manage. Whoever answers the phone should be prepared to respond accurately, not deflect to a callback unless the caller chooses one.
Do not require a caller’s name, address, or phone number first.
Per the FTC guidance, callers cannot be required to give their name, address, or phone number before receiving the price information they request. You may offer to follow up, and many callers will gladly share contact details — but the price information should not be gated behind them. Train staff to lead with the answer, then invite (not demand) contact details.
Keep your General Price List (GPL) accessible to whoever answers.
A pricing question can come in at any hour and to any staff member. Make sure the current GPL — or a clean internal reference drawn from it — is within reach of every person who might answer the phone, including after-hours and weekend coverage. A price quoted from memory is a price that can drift.
Cover the items families ask about most.
Most pricing calls center on a short list: direct cremation, cremation with a memorial or funeral service, immediate burial, and a full traditional service. Have current figures for each of these ready so a caller is not left waiting while someone hunts for a number. Where a price legitimately depends on selections, say so plainly rather than guessing.
Be consistent across every staff member and shift.
Two callers asking the same question on the same day should hear the same information. Inconsistency erodes trust and creates risk. Decide as a firm how price calls are handled, write it down, and make sure new hires, part-time staff, and after-hours coverage all work from the same reference.
Have a clear plan for after-hours price calls.
Pricing questions do not stop when the office closes. The FTC's guidance indicates providers may use answering machines or answering services to handle calls — but a plan should still exist so callers can get the information they ask for. See our companion resource on after-hours price calls for the operational options and their trade-offs.
Document your approach and train to it.
Compliance is easier to demonstrate when it is written down. Keep a short internal procedure for phone price handling, review it periodically against current FTC guidance, and fold it into onboarding for anyone who answers the phone. Documentation also makes it far simpler to spot and fix a gap before it becomes a pattern.
For the specific text of the rule and its requirements, consult the FTC's Complying with the Funeral Rule guidance directly.
Keep going
Companion resources in this cluster.
Funeral price call script
A compassionate, ready-to-use phone script for callers asking about pricing — warm opening, the core figures, and a gentle next step.
After-hours price calls
Operational options for handling pricing questions outside business hours — answering machines, live services, and AI answering — with FTC-guidance nuance.
How FuneralWiseAI helps
A consistent first answer — including the calls that come after hours.
FuneralWiseAI is an AI answering service for funeral homes. When a caller asks about pricing, the agent picks up immediately and responds with information the firm has provided — every caller hears the same figures, whether they call during the day or late at night. Each call produces a structured summary so a director can follow up on their own timeline.
The agent is one operational option among several, and it does not replace the director's judgment or your responsibility for the accuracy of your price information. It is a tool to help give a calm, consistent first response. Whether an AI service fits a particular firm's compliance approach is a decision to review against current FTC guidance and qualified counsel.
See how price calls are handled, in your own firm's words.
We build every demo using your actual content. 15 minutes, no sales pitch — just the product handling the calls you handle every day.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Does the Funeral Rule require funeral homes to give prices over the phone?
The FTC’s "Complying with the Funeral Rule" guidance indicates that funeral providers must give price information over the telephone when a caller asks for it. The Funeral Rule is enforced by the FTC, and how it applies can depend on your situation and state law, so consult the current FTC guidance or qualified counsel for compliance decisions.
Can we ask for the caller’s name and number before quoting prices?
The FTC guidance indicates that callers cannot be required to give their name, address, or phone number before receiving the price information they request. You may still offer to follow up and most callers will share contact details willingly, but the price information itself should not be gated behind them.
What pricing items should staff be ready to quote?
Callers most often ask about direct cremation, cremation with a memorial or funeral service, immediate burial, and a full traditional service. Keeping current figures for these within reach of anyone who answers the phone helps avoid delays and inconsistency.
How should after-hours pricing calls be handled?
The FTC guidance indicates providers may use answering machines or answering services to handle calls. The practical goal is that a caller can still get the price information they ask for outside business hours. Our companion resource on after-hours price calls walks through the operational options and their trade-offs.
Is this checklist legal advice?
No. This is operational education to help funeral home staff think through phone price handling. The Funeral Rule is enforced by the FTC and its application can depend on your specific situation and state law. Always consult qualified counsel or current FTC guidance for compliance decisions.