The Federal Commerce Fee mentioned its first “undercover cellphone sweep” of funeral houses throughout the nation had discovered that dozens didn’t precisely disclose prices for companies to callers.

Of the greater than 250 funeral companies F.T.C. staff known as, 38 both didn’t reply questions on costs or provided inconsistent costs for equivalent companies, the fee mentioned. Many houses, it mentioned, supplied “materially completely different” costs for a similar companies throughout two separate cellphone calls.

One other house promised to ship an itemized worth record, the company mentioned, however as an alternative despatched a listing of package deal costs, which don’t meet disclosure necessities.

The 39 funeral homes obtained warning letters in January that they’d did not adjust to a legislation generally known as the Funeral Rule. The F.T.C. enforces the rule, which outlines protections for shoppers searching for funeral companies.

“It’s crucial that buyers are in a position to comparability store,” mentioned Melissa Dickey, an F.T.C. lawyer and a co-coordinator of the Funeral Rule. “Not everybody can go in particular person to choose up a worth record.”

Of the funeral house that despatched a listing of package deal choices, Ms. Dickey mentioned: “You don’t have to purchase a package deal.” The funeral house should allow you to purchase solely the companies you need.

One of many houses additionally misrepresented native necessities for embalming, or preservation of the physique after dying, the F.T.C. mentioned. Some funeral houses could require embalming as a part of their very own insurance policies, however most states don’t require it, the fee mentioned, and the few others require it solely in restricted circumstances.

Bereaved individuals are careworn and weak after they contact funeral houses, and in an more and more cell society, family members typically should make preparations from out of state, mentioned Sara Williams, president of the Funeral Shoppers Alliance, a nonprofit group that seeks honest remedy of individuals searching for funeral companies.

Ms. Dickey declined to share particulars of what F.T.C. staff had mentioned to funeral houses throughout the calls. However, she mentioned, the legislation requires funeral administrators to offer worth data on the cellphone. Callers don’t have to provide their title, handle or cellphone quantity, she mentioned, they usually needn’t be a relative of the deceased.

“The funeral house can not refuse to provide out data,” Ms. Dickey mentioned. “They need to be answering questions regardless of who is looking.”

In a statement in regards to the sweep, the Nationwide Funeral Administrators Affiliation mentioned, “Whereas the compliance charge definitely needs to be increased, the F.T.C. reported a greater than 85 % compliance charge.” That was in keeping with, if not increased than, outcomes from prior fee investigations involving secret buyers who visited funeral houses in particular person, the trade group mentioned.

Funerals might be costly. The everyday value of a funeral with a coffin and burial is $8,300, whereas the price of a funeral with cremation, together with a particular coffin and an urn, is $6,280, in response to 2023 data from the nationwide affiliation, which represents about 11,000 funeral houses.

The F.T.C. didn’t suggest prosecution of the violations, however requested the houses to take “immediate remedial motion” to adjust to the legislation, which partly requires funeral houses to provide written tariffs for services to individuals who go to in particular person, and to share pricing over the cellphone on request. Houses that don’t comply threat penalties of greater than $51,000 per violation, in response to the warning letters.

The F.T.C. is weighing updates to the 40-year-old Funeral Rule. As a result of it predates the widespread use of the web, the rule doesn’t handle digital disclosure of costs. Shopper advocates are urging the company to modernize the legislation by requiring funeral houses to publish their tariffs on-line.

Ms. Williams of the Funeral Shoppers Alliance mentioned that doing preliminary analysis electronically might assist make a troublesome process simpler, and that requiring on-line worth disclosures would merely acknowledge that “it’s how we stay now.”

Some funeral houses do publish costs on their web sites, however they don’t all the time make the data straightforward to seek out, in response to a 2023 report from the Shopper Federation of America, a nonprofit group. Requiring on-line posting would make monitoring compliance with the legislation simpler, mentioned Stephen Brobeck, a senior fellow with the federation. As an alternative of constructing undercover calls or visits, investigators might merely verify web sites.

The funeral administrators affiliation, in written comments to the F.T.C., mentioned requiring on-line worth disclosure was unwarranted as a result of its knowledge confirmed that the “small minority” of shoppers who shopped for funeral by evaluating costs weren’t doing so on the web.

“Overwhelmingly, funeral shoppers choose to go to or name the funeral house they intend to make use of, versus looking out on-line,” the affiliation mentioned.

Christopher L. Farmer, the overall counsel of the funeral director affiliation, mentioned in a cellphone interview that the group supported worth transparency, however that funeral houses needs to be allowed to decide on for themselves whether or not to reveal costs on-line.

Shopper advocates mentioned extra individuals would store for funeral companies on-line if costs had been extensively obtainable there.

Listed here are some questions and solutions about getting details about funerals and associated companies:

What else ought to I do know when calling a funeral house for worth data?

Though they don’t seem to be required to take action, many funeral administrators could mail or electronic mail their tariffs in case you ask. The funeral house can’t require you to go to it, Ms. Dickey mentioned, however in case you do go in particular person, you might be additionally entitled to obtain a duplicate of the value record there. “In the event that they received’t provide the data,” she mentioned, “discover a completely different enterprise.”

The F.T.C. affords more tips on its web site.

You may as well verify to see in case your state has an arm of the Funeral Shoppers Alliance, which can have data on suppliers. Ms. Williams, who can be president of the alliance’s North Carolina affiliate, mentioned her group periodically gathered tariffs from funeral houses within the state and posted them on its web site.

What if I’ve a criticism?

When you encounter an issue with companies that may’t be resolved with the funeral director, most states have a funeral company or board which will assist. (The Funeral Shoppers Alliance affords a listing of state contacts, together with recommendations for wording a criticism, on its website.) You may as well submit a criticism to the consumer affairs division of the legal professional basic’s workplace in your state. The F.T.C. additionally accepts complaints on its web site.

When is the F.T.C. anticipated to announce if it’s going to suggest adjustments to the Funeral Rule?

A spokeswoman for the F.T.C. mentioned no replace on timing was obtainable. Mr. Brobeck on the shopper federation mentioned he was “optimistic” that the company would publish a proposed replace someday this 12 months.