Anyone aged 18 or over can take out a plan. There are no medical or health restrictions on buying a plan but if you have been told by a doctor that you have an illness or condition which will cause death within 12 months, this will limit the ways in which you can pay for your plan. If you choose to pay for your plan using an available finance option, all repayments must be made before your 85th birthday so that may limit how you choose to pay for your plan.
Golden Leaves offer interest-free payments over 12 months. You may also be able to take out a finance option to pay for your plan over 2 – 8 years, subject to status and personal circumstances. However, if you have been told by a doctor that you have an illness or condition which will cause death within 12 months, these options will not be available to you: in this case, you will only be able to make payment in one single amount.
We recommend that you take out travel insurance when you go on holiday, especially if you travel abroad, which usually covers bringing you back home if necessary. Alternatively we can quote for the extra cost involved.
If you move, you should be able to transfer your plan to a funeral director near your new home. However, there may be additional costs depending on local prices. Please refer to the Terms and Conditions for details, or speak to a member of the team.
Yes – we find many customers choose to do this.
The plan is guaranteed to cover the funeral director’s costs listed in the plan details as long as your requirements don’t change and we carry out your funeral. The plan can also include an allowance towards third party costs, such as the fees for cremation or burial, medical fees and payment to a minister or officiant. These costs are outside our control. If these costs, as listed in the plan details, are not covered by the plan value at time of need, there will be a balance to pay. Please refer to the Terms and Conditions for more information.
Regardless of how you pay for your plan, if you change your mind within 30 days of your plan being put in place by Golden Leaves, you can cancel for any reason and get back all the money you have paid. Golden Leaves is also required by Financial Conduct Authority rules to send you documents setting out who the funeral director is who will carry out the funeral you have paid for. If you receive these after your 30 day cooling off period has expired, you can also cancel within an additional 7 days.
If you pay for your plan in 12 monthly instalments, you have additional rights over and above the 30 days mentioned above. In this case, you can cancel your plan any time within 12 months of Golden Leaves putting your plan in place and you will still get back any money that you have paid.
If you cancel after the 30 day period or 12 month period outlined above, you can still cancel and get back the money that you have paid but Golden Leaves will keep a £249 charge for administration.
Funeral pre-payment plans are provided by Golden Leaves Limited, who have been offering plans for more than 35 years. The money you pay is held in the Golden Leaves Trust, which independently manages the funds to achieve stable long-term growth, specifically to cover the increasing cost of funeral services.
The Trust is regulated in compliance with The Financial Services and Markets Act 2001 and is overseen by a board of trustees who have appointed Julius Baer, LGT Vestra, Cazenove and Quilter Cheviot as the investment fund managers for the Trust. The fund is independently audited each year and subject to strict actuarial reporting.