R Gwinnell & Sons, Colchester

You can arrange a funeral by choosing a funeral director who will help you organise all of the details. They can help you decide whether to have a cremation or burial and what type of service to choose, as well as additional options, such as music and flowers. You can find out what happens at a funeral and compare funeral directors on Funeral Guide.

Disbursements are additional costs for a funeral service that are paid to third-parties, such as florists, celebrants and burial fees. The funeral director will usually charge you for them and then pay the suppliers themselves.

If the cost of a funeral is not covered by a prepaid funeral plan, or the estate of the person who has died, you may be able to get financial help from the government’s Bereavement Support Payment or from War Disablement Pensions, charitable funds or budgeting loans.