Are You Operating Your Funeral Home Ethically?
Funeral directors wear many hats in the workplace. Along with acting as
counselors, caring for grieving families, and working as event planners, they
must always ensure that their businesses are run ethically and in accordance
with applicable laws and regulations. The Funeral Rule, which was promulgated
by the Federal Trade Commission, requires funeral homes to give consumers a
General Price List and prohibits funeral homes from requiring consumers to buy
any item, such as a casket, as a condition of obtaining other funeral goods or
services.
Every year, the Federal Trade Commission conducts undercover visits to
randomly selected funeral homes to shop for goods and services in an attempt to
assess compliance with the Funeral Rule. In the most recent round of
investigations, FTC investigators found failure to disclose pricing information
as required by the Funeral Rule in 29 of the 134 funeral homes they visited
during 2017. Since 1996, when the FTC began its inspections, around 18 percent
of funeral homes have been found in violation of the Funeral Rule. Funeral
homes that violate the Funeral Rule risk incurring civil penalties of over
$40,000 per violation.
FuneralCE®, a service of WebCE®, launched a new ethics
course, Ethical
Business Practices for Funeral Directors, that highlights the
importance of maintaining high ethical standards as well as what may happen if
those ethical standards are breached. Funeral professionals will also gain a
deeper understanding of NFDA’s Code of Professional Conduct and will review the
obligations imposed by the Funeral Rule. Finally, funeral directors will learn
tips and some winning customer service business strategies that will keep
clients happy and their business reputable.
To order this new ethics course and more, visit www.FuneralCE.com or call 877-332-8480 to speak
to a member of our support services team.
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FuneralCE Courses