Funeral quotes in France: how to choose?

When a loved one passes away, the first step is to obtain a funeral quote from a french funeral agency. This quote is always free of charge, and to allow for easy comparison between several funeral quotes, the law now requires strict adherence to a very specific format that every funeral agency must follow.

Discover the mandatory information that must be included in a quote.

Understanding a Funeral Quote

The funeral quote presents all the services and their respective costs. It is presented in the form of a table with 3 columns. These 3 columns are used to distinguish the types of services:

• Standard services: As the name suggests, these are all the mandatory services, either due to the circumstances of the death or due to legislation. These include the coffin with 4 handles, the deceased's identification plate, services related to burial or cremation, administrative procedures, transportation of the body after the coffin has been sealed, and pallbearers for the ceremony and burial.
• Additional services: As the name suggests, these are optional. You can choose to refuse them if you wish. Examples include the master of ceremonies, flowers, a cross on the coffin, or embalming services.
• Services billed on behalf of third parties: These are services that are not performed by the funeral home and are billed separately, such as municipal taxes, religious fees, cremation fees, etc.

In addition to these 3 columns, the services listed in the funeral quote are divided into several categories that follow the chronological order of the funeral process: preparation of the deceased, transportation to the ceremony location, funeral ceremony, etc.

All of this is meant to provide a simplified and uniform presentation for families so that a comparison between several funeral quotes can be easily made.

What are the mandatory services in a funeral quote ?

For burial in a vault

For a burial, the funeral home quote must include,

If the vault does not exist:

• The cost of constructing the vault.
• The purchase of the burial plot. This service is a municipal tax and therefore appears in column 3 of the funeral quote.

If the vault exists:

• The cost of opening and closing the vault.
• Possible renewal fees for the burial plot if its duration is about to expire soon.
• The foundation to delineate the area of the grave. This element is not mandatory in all cemeteries. It depends on the cemetery's internal regulations.

For ground burial

For a ground burial, the quote must include,

If the burial plot does not exist:

• The purchase of the burial plot.

If the burial plot exists:

• The disassembly of any existing grave monument.
• Renewal fees for the burial plot if its duration is about to expire soon.
• Digging for the grave.
• The installation of a foundation if required by the cemetery.

For cremation

For a cremation, the quote must include:

• The urn with its identification plaque.
• The cremation fees. This service is performed by the crematorium, not the funeral home. It is therefore listed in column 3.
• The purchase of the burial plot if you decide to bury the urn in a columbarium niche or a family vault.
• The costs of opening and closing the vault or columbarium, if applicable.

For international body repatriation:

For body repatriation to a foreign country, the funeral quote will include the following mandatory services:

• Transportation fees, whether by road or air. In the latter case, airfare costs will be in column 3 because they are billed by the airline.
• Consulate fees, also in column 3.
• A hermetically sealed coffin, essential for air repatriations.
• Any sworn translations of official documents.
• Embalming services, if required by the destination country.

For more information, please consult our guide on repatriating a deceased person from France.