The insurers must now provide clear estimates of the total cost of such policies based on the age at which they are taken out.
The goal is to help policyholders better understand what they will pay — and to avoid unpleasant surprises at the time of death.
With nearly 4 million active funeral insurance policies in France, such coverage has become a common financial tool for end-of-life planning.
However, beneficiaries often discover upon opening a policy that the guaranteed capital is less than the total amount paid, especially in lifelong contribution plans. Grieving families are often shocked at the amount paid and received for such policies, with many cases of ‘overpayment’.
To address this lack of clarity, a new law came into effect from 1st July. It requires insurers and banks to provide better information to policyholders, including clear tables showing cumulative contributions for different entry ages.
The information provided to every new policyholder must now include an estimate of the total contributions paid over the life of the policy, based on three standard entry ages: 50, 60, and 70 years.
For each age, the table will detail the total amounts paid under a lifelong plan, or for a plan of limited duration, or for a single premium.
This mandatory table aims to highlight significant differences between plans. For example, a policy taken out at age 60 with lifelong contributions could result in total payments of €8,000 for a guaranteed capital of €5,000, if the policyholder lives a long life. This economic imbalance, often overlooked, can now be anticipated.
In addition, insurers must comply with new contractual requirements: a maximum one-year waiting period (during which the capital is not paid out in the event of death), a reduction in abusive exclusion clauses, and standardised pre-contractual information.
Comparison websites will also need to integrate these new grids, making it easier for consumers to objectively evaluate offers.
In France, a traditional burial costs between €3,500 and €4,500, depending on the services chosen. Consumer associations are frequent critics of funeral costs.
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