Age Co Natural Funeral Plan Key Features Summary

Age Co Natural Funeral Plan Key Features Summary

‘we’ or ‘us’ or ‘our’ refer to Advance Planning Limited;

and ‘you’ or ‘your’ or ‘applicant’ means the person applying for the plan

About this Key Features Summary

This document is intended to provide you with a summary of the key  features  and  benefits  of  the  Age Co Natural Funeral Plan to allow you to assess whether it meets your requirements.

Please refer to the Plan literature and Terms and Conditions that accompany this document for full details on the Plan.

What is the Age Co Natural Funeral Plan?

The Natural Range offers a choice of two Prepaid Funeral Plans, which let you pay for certain funeral costs in advance and include the main services for a funeral.

Who provides the Age Co Natural Funeral Plan?

The Age Co Natural Funeral Plan is provided by Advance Planning Limited, which is owned by Dignity.

About Dignity

Dignity is one of the UK’s leading providers of funeral plans. Dignity launched the UK’s first nationally available funeral plan in 1985 and has helped over 997,000 people plan for their  funeral  in  advance.  Age Co has worked with Dignity since 1988. Dignity is one of the UK’s largest operators of Funeral Directors and crematoria and is a British company listed on the London Stock Exchange.

Who is the Prepaid Funeral Plan for?

Unless advised otherwise in writing by Age Co Funeral Plans you can have an Age Co Prepaid Funeral Plan if the person who the funeral is for is aged 50 or over.  The funeral must also take place in mainland Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Jersey, Isle of Wight or Isle of Man.

What will the Prepaid Funeral Plan provide?

The Age Co Natural Funeral Plan will provide the guaranteed services included in the Plan through a Nominated Funeral Director when the time comes. Provided that the Plan is paid for in full or the Instalment Promise applies, there will be nothing further to pay for the guaranteed services covered by the Plan.

All Plans guarantee to cover the following services:

Funeral Director Services;

• Advice and guidance on all aspects of the funeral including the registration of the death and collation of all necessary paperwork for the funeral to proceed
• Transport of the deceased to the Nominated Funeral Director’s premises within 50 miles
• Preparation and care of the body
• The coffin provided within the selected Plan
• Funeral Director and staff to attend service
• Provision of a hearse
• Free telephone bereavement advice and support

Third Party Cremation Costs;

• The cremation fee
• Fee for a Minister or an Officiant equal to the amount paid for a standard funeral service at the crematorium or cemetery as listed in the Church of England Table of Parochial Fees

Dependent on the Plan chosen, the following are also guaranteed:

• Family viewing by appointment
• Limousines to transport the mourners
• Transport to place of worship prior to cremation or burial
• ‘Thank you’ cards

If burial is chosen, the Plan will include a contribution of £1,220 towards third party burial costs in place of the guaranteed Third Party Cremation Costs listed above. We will increase the value of the £1,220 contribution each year in line with the Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation to help it keep pace with rising costs.

The Instalment Promise;

If the Plan is paid for by instalments of 13 months or more, the Plan will include the Instalment Promise. Should the funeral be required before the instalment term has been completed, providing the Plan has been in place for more than 12 months, premiums are up to date and the Plan is not cancelled or lapsed, the Instalment Promise will apply and the funeral services in the Plan will be provided with nothing more to pay.

What won’t the Age Co Natural Funeral Plan provide? The Plans do not include:

• Embalming
• The cost of Special Requests such as memorials, flowers, catering, newspaper obituaries etc
• Transport of more than 50 miles from the Nominated Funeral Director. Any charge for additional miles will be payable to the Nominated Funeral Director at the time
• The cost of removal of mechanisms such as pacemakers (which must be removed before a cremation)
• Costs for conducting the funeral, burial or cremation on a weekend, at an unusual hour or public holiday
• Any additional charges that are passed to  us  due to changes in regulations, tax, laws or generally accepted practice
• The cost of repatriation from outside mainland Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Jersey, Isle of Wight or Isle of Man
• Any Doctor’s fees and Coroner’s fees

Other Plan limitations include:

• If the Plan is paid for by instalments of up to 12 months, and the funeral is required before the final payment has been paid, your Funeral Organiser would have to pay the outstanding balance at the time of the funeral
• If the Plan is paid for by instalments of 13 months or more and the funeral is required within 12 months of the Plan starting, the Instalment Promise will not apply unless the Planholder has died as a result of an accident as defined within the Terms and Conditions
• Any taxes. Value Added Tax is not currently charged on a funeral service. However, if this or any other tax becomes chargeable on a funeral service or part of it, your Personal Representative must pay the tax at the time of the funeral

What are prices of the Plans?

Age Co Natural Funeral Plans are designed to meet our customers’ different requirements and budgets. For example, you can make a single payment or spread the cost of your Plan over 12 monthly instalments. The prices for these options are:

*There is no extra charge for 12 monthly instalments

The prices listed above are the full Plan price and are valid as at 17/12/2020. Prices are subject to review. If at the point of application, the Plan price has changed for any reason, we will advise you of this before we set up your Plan and there will be no obligation for you to continue.

Longer fixed instalment terms are available provided that all payments over any instalment term longer than 12 months are completed by the 85th birthday of the eldest person named on the Plan and the instalment term does not exceed the maximum term available. Plans purchased over a period greater than 12 months will incur an additional fee.

How can I pay?

If you buy your Plan in a lump sum you can pay for your Plan by Credit or Debit Card, Cheque or Direct Debit.

If you buy your Plan by instalments your Plan will need to be paid for by Direct Debit. Your Direct Debit details will be taken at the point you apply for the Plan.

How is the money I pay protected?

The money that you pay for your Plan is paid directly into the Trust for Age UK Funeral Plans. The Trust is completely separate and legally independent from Age Co, Advance Planning Limited and Dignity. The Trust is run by Managing Trustees, the majority of whom are independent of Age Co, Advance Planning Limited and Dignity.

PricewaterhouseCoopers conduct an annual actuarial valuation of the Trust Fund, which determines if there is enough money in the Trust Fund for Dignity to meet its liabilities and promises to Planholders.

The appointed auditors conduct annual audits of the Trust’s accounts.

The Trust adheres to the rules of the Funeral Planning Authority, who receive copies of the Trust’s accounts and valuations and other information it requests.

What happens to the money in the Trust Fund?

All the money you pay for the Plan goes straight into the Trust Fund’s bank account. From the money held in the Trust:

• Advance Planning Limited is paid an allowance for the marketing, administration and lifetime customer management of the Plan
• There are annual costs for Trust management services, audits, valuations and other scheme expenses
• The remaining funds after these deductions are available to pay the Dignity Nominated Funeral Director, after the funeral has taken place, who agrees to provide all the guaranteed services

We publish a report on the Trust for Age UK Funeral Plans annually and it is available upon request.

What happens if there is not enough in the Trust to pay for the funeral?

In the unlikely event that the Trust does not have enough money to cover the future cost of funeral services promised to Planholders, Advance Planning Limited through Dignity would still honour the guarantees made to Planholders.

Dignity owns a nationwide network of Funeral Directors and crematoriums and even in extreme circumstances should still be able to meet the promises made to Planholders.

How can I be sure Advanced Planning Limited or Dignity will still be there to deliver my funeral?

The money for your funeral would still be protected because it is legally separate from Advance Planning Limited and Dignity.

In the unlikely event that Dignity were no longer in business it may however mean that  Advance Planning Limited would be unable to provide the funeral or cover set out in your Plan.

If this happened the Managing Trustees of the Trust would work with the remaining Nominated Funeral Directors, and where necessary seek to appoint new Nominated Funeral Directors, to continue to provide services to Planholders.

Advance Planning Limited are a registered provider with the Funeral Planning Authority (FPA) and in this scenario other Registered Funeral Providers would co-operate in the delivery of the FPA’s “Pledge to Customers” by which the other Registered Funeral Providers will examine the ways in which they might assist in delivering the funerals of affected customers.

What will I be sent after I apply for a Plan?

Once your Application Form has been received, yourPlan will be set up within 14 days and you will be sent your Planholder Pack. This will contain confirmation of the Plan you have purchased, the amount you have paid, what is covered, details of the Funeral Director and how to claim. It will also contain a pack to be given to your Funeral Organiser.

What happens if I move home?

You must inform us so we can update our records. If you have moved to a new area, we may need to allocate a new Nominated Funeral Director. There is no charge for this, as your Plan is portable, and all the Plan guarantees will still be honoured.

Can I choose my Funeral Director?

We will allocate a Funeral Director to your Plan, which we refer to as the Nominated Funeral Director. For the Fern and Forest Plans the network is made up of those Nominated Funeral Directors owned by Dignity. If you would like to check if your Plan can be allocated to a specific Funeral Director, please contact us before you purchase. We may change your Plan to a different Nominated Funeral Director if required.

What happens if the Nominated Funeral Director goes out of business?

If this were to happen, Advance Planning Limited would re-allocate your Plan to a new Nominated Funeral Director. All the guarantees made in your Plan would still stand and you would not be charged any additional fees.

How to claim

When the person who the Plan is for passes away, the Funeral Organiser should telephone Age Co Funeral Plans direct at any time 24 hours a day on 0800 028 3135.

This single phone call is all that is needed to put your Plan into motion. We will contact the Nominated Funeral Director and provide them with the details of your Plan and your Funeral Organiser. The Nominated Funeral Director will then get in touch with the Funeral Organiser to finalise all of the arrangements.

What happens if my family or representative doesn’t use the Plan?

If the Plan is not found until after the Planholder’s funeral is arranged, or if your Next of Kin or Executor chooses not to use the Plan, they can cancel the Plan and receive a refund of the original amount paid for the Plan, less the £249 cancellation fee.

Cancellation

You can cancel your Plan at any time. To receive a full refund of any payments made you must cancel the Plan within 30 days from the date you receive your Planholder Pack and Agreement. We will charge a fee of £249 for cancellations after 30 days. Refunds will be completed within 14 days of the request being received.

If you wish to cancel your Plan, you should either complete and return the form included in the Planholder Pack you will be sent or otherwise as follows:

Post: Age Co Funeral Plans, 4 King Edwards Court, King Edwards Square, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands B73 6AP

Telephone: 0800 028 3135

Email: agecofuneralplan@dignityuk.co.uk

How to make a complaint

We make every effort to excel in the service we provide. However, if you feel we have not met your expectations, please contact our Client Relations Department who will acknowledge your complaint within 2 working days and will do their utmost to ensure any complaint is dealt with as quickly and efficiently as possible. Our Client Relations Department can be contacted as follows:

Post: Client Relations Department, Age Co Funeral Plans, 4 King Edwards Court, King Edwards Square, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, B73 6AP

Telephone: 0800 731 0655

Email: agecoclientrelations@dignityuk.co.uk

If you are dissatisfied with the response from us you can take the matter further. Advance Planning Limited is registered with the Funeral Planning Authority (FPA), an independent organisation, whose Code of Practice we follow.

The FPA can be contacted as follows:

Telephone: 0345 601 9619

Email: info@funeralplanningauthority.co.uk

Website: www.funeralplanningauthority.com

The Funeral Planning Authority when handling complaints uses one of the approved Alternative Dispute Resolution providers and you can gain direct access to them by using the FPA contact details provided above. You also have legal rights to dispute resolution via any other Alternative Dispute Resolution providers that might be specified under consumer protection laws from time to time.

Law

English Law applies to this agreement. This Key Features Summary applies to Age Co Funeral Plans purchased from 12/05/2021.

Need to Contact us?

If after reading this document, you have any questions here are our contact details:

Post: Age Co Funeral Plans, 4 King Edwards Court, King Edwards Square, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands B73 6AP

Telephone: 0800 028 3135

Email: agecofuneralplan@dignityuk.co.uk

Please see the Terms and Conditions for further details.