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Burial insurance, or final expense insurance, is a life insurance policy with low coverage amounts designed to cover final expenses. It requires no medical exam and is generally purchased by people who want funeral insurance to cover final expenses and cannot get approved for other types of coverage.
Table of Contents
Find The Best Life Insurance
Find The Best Life Insurance
Comparing the Best Burial Insurance Companies
What Does Burial Insurance Cost?
Burial insurance costs an average of $74 per month or $888 per year for a policy with $10,000 in coverage for seniors over 60, based on our analysis. For seniors over 70, the costs will be higher.
Average Burial Insurance Cost for $10,000 in Coverage
Source: Forbes Advisor research
What Factors Affect the Cost of Burial Insurance?
Although health is not a factor in the cost of burial insurance, insurers will consider other factors to determine your specific rates.
How Do I Get the Best Burial Insurance?
Ashlee Valentine
Insurance Editor
Les Masterson
Insurance Editor
Penny Gusner
Insurance Senior Writer
Look Into Coverage Limits
When shopping for a burial insurance policy, I suggest looking at coverage limits. Burial insurance policies usually have low coverage amounts, so if you want the most coverage, you’ll want to compare maximum coverage amounts among insurers.
Consider Your Final Wishes
I recommend considering your final wishes when deciding how much burial insurance to buy. The costs will be much different if you want the most basic burial or cremation with no funeral service than if you want a large, extravagant funeral with an expensive casket.
Look at Insurance Company Ratings
While you may be searching for a low-cost policy, we also highly recommend you make sure the insurer has favorable ratings, such as low customer complaints and a high AM Best rating. This will help me feel confident that my beneficiaries will have no trouble getting the death benefit.
Methodology
We chose the best burial life insurance companies based on the following measurements.
- Cost (50% of score): We analyzed burial insurance costs. Only life insurance companies with online quotes for burial insurance were included in our analysis.
- Complaints (50% of score): We factored in complaints about life insurance based on data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Complaint data reflects upheld complaints around the country, and a high complaint level knocked some companies out of our top picks.
Compare Life Insurance Companies
Compare Policies With Leading Insurers
Other Burial Life Insurance Companies We Rated
Best Burial Insurance Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What does burial insurance cover?
Burial insurance, also known as final expense insurance, is designed to cover final expenses and burial costs. However, the death benefit of a burial insurance policy can be spent in any way your beneficiaries choose to spend it.
Does burial insurance have a waiting period?
Most burial insurance policies include a waiting period (meaning you’re unlikely to find a policy with no waiting period), during which time graded death benefits will apply. That means that if you die of natural causes within the policy’s waiting period, your beneficiaries will receive a reduced death benefit.
Who is burial insurance best for?
Burial insurance, sometimes referred to as bereavement insurance, is often more expensive for low coverage amounts compared to other types of life insurance. For this reason, it should be a last resort for most people and used only when other types of life insurance are not available.
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