ACCC WARNS OF POSSIBLE FUNERAL FUNDING RORTS

Delia Rickard.

GEOFF VIVIAN

The Commonwealth Government has decided to cover the cost of funerals for Aboriginal people left out of pocket after the collapse of funeral insurance company Youpla.

However ACCC deputy chair Delia Rickard warned that unscrupulous funeral directors might overcharge people arranging a funeral if they knew that Government money was available.

“So we are going out early saying: ‘we expect that funeral providers will not be increasing the price of funerals for the people who are grant recipients’,” she said. “And we’d also recommend to people that they avoid disclosing to funeral profiders that they are eligible for the funds under the Youpla Group Funeral Benefits Program until they have obtained the quote and chosen a provider.”

Ms Rickards urged people to shop around and make sure they were only paying for essential services, not optional extras.

“If you were in a city I would say: ‘get quotes for a number of providers’,” she said. “That’s not always going to be possible in some circumstances but where it is possible get a number of quotes so you get an idea of the cost of the funeral. And ask the provider about the minimum cost of funeral services covering only essential services when comparing services. There can be a lot of bells and whistles added on so you want to compare the core prices there.”

Ms Rickard said people were eligible for the assistance if they were members of the Youpla fund on or after April 1, 2020.