Money & benefits · 12 min read

Help with funeral costs

If you cannot afford a funeral, there is real help available — but almost all of it has deadlines and conditions. Here's who qualifies, how much you get, and what to do first.

Published 2026-08-01

Last reviewed 2026-08-04

The average simple attended funeral in the UK now costs £3,828, and around £4,897 in London, according to the SunLife Cost of Dying Report 2026. The full cost of dying — funeral, professional fees and send-off — averages £5,140. For a great many families that is simply not available at short notice.

There is genuine help. It is not generous, it does not usually cover everything, and nearly all of it is time-limited — but it exists, and it is badly under-claimed. This guide sets out every route in order of how much it is likely to be worth to you.

1. Funeral Expenses Payment (the main one)

The Funeral Expenses Payment — sometimes still called the Social Fund Funeral Payment — is a government payment towards a funeral for people on certain qualifying benefits. It is the single most valuable form of help for most families, and it is a payment, not a loan, although it will be recovered from the estate if the person who died left money.

Who can claim

You must be receiving at least one of the following at the time you claim:

• Universal Credit
• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Pension Credit
• Housing Benefit
• Child Tax Credit
• Working Tax Credit including the disability or severe disability element

You must also be the person responsible for the funeral, and you must have an acceptable relationship to the person who died — typically their partner, a close relative, or a close friend where there is no closer relative able to take responsibility.

How much you get

The payment has two parts:

So the burial or cremation fee itself is covered in full, and you get up to £1,000 towards the rest. Against a £3,828 average funeral, that means a shortfall is likely on a traditional attended funeral — but it can cover a simple or unattended funeral almost entirely. This is one of the reasons direct cremation is worth considering when money is tight.

The payment is reduced by money available from the estate, an insurance policy, a prepaid funeral plan, or a charitable or relative's contribution towards the funeral specifically.

How and when to claim

The form is SF200, available on GOV.UK, and you can claim online, by post, or by phone through the Bereavement Service helpline. You will need:

• Your National Insurance number and details of your qualifying benefit
• Details of the person who died and your relationship to them
• The funeral director's itemised invoice or written estimate — an estimate is enough, you do not have to wait for the final bill
• Details of the estate, any insurance policies and any prepaid plan

If your claim is refused and you think the decision is wrong, ask for a mandatory reconsideration within one month, then appeal to a tribunal if needed. Refusals on the 'closer relative' rule are frequently overturned when the full circumstances are explained.

2. Bereavement Support Payment

This is separate from funeral help and is not means-tested. It is paid to a surviving spouse, civil partner, or — following changes in the law — a surviving cohabiting partner with children, where the person who died had paid sufficient National Insurance contributions or died as a result of an industrial injury or disease.

Bereavement Support Payment does not affect other benefits for the first 12 months and is tax-free. You must be under State Pension age when the person died.

3. Children's Funeral Fund

If a child under 18 dies, or a baby is stillborn after 24 weeks of pregnancy, the Children's Funeral Fund for England covers burial or cremation fees in full, regardless of the family's income. There is no means test. It also contributes towards a coffin, shroud or casket, up to a set limit.

In most cases the funeral director or the crematorium claims directly and you never see a bill for those elements — but ask explicitly, because families are occasionally invoiced in error. Similar schemes operate in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

4. Public health funeral (if there is nobody and nothing)

If no family or friends can be found, or nobody is able to pay for a funeral at all, the local council or the hospital has a legal duty under the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 to arrange a public health funeral. In Bexley this would be arranged by the London Borough of Bexley.

It is a simple, dignified funeral — normally a cremation, in a plain coffin, with no procession and often no service, at a time set by the council. Family can usually attend if they wish, and can ask about holding a short service, though flowers and extras will not be provided. The council may recover the cost from the estate.

This is a genuine safety net, not a disgrace. If you truly cannot pay and there is no estate, contact the council's bereavement services team before signing anything with a funeral director — once you have signed a contract, you are liable for it and the council's duty may no longer apply.

5. Other sources worth checking

• A prepaid funeral plan. Check the person's paperwork before doing anything. Plans have been FCA-regulated since 29 July 2022 and are protected by the FSCS. See planning your own funeral.
• Life insurance or an over-50s plan. Small whole-of-life policies are extremely common among older people and frequently forgotten. Check bank statements for regular small premiums.
• Employer death-in-service benefit. Often two to four times salary, and payable even if the person had only recently joined. Contact the HR department.
• Pension scheme death benefits. Many occupational and personal pensions pay a lump sum. Contact every scheme the person ever paid into.
• Trade union or professional association benefits. Many unions pay a funeral grant to members' families.
• Armed forces. If the person was a veteran, the Royal British Legion and SSAFA can both help with funeral costs.
• Bank accounts. Banks will often release funds from the deceased's own account to pay a funeral invoice directly, even before probate. Take the invoice to the branch and ask.
• Charitable grants. Turn2us maintains a searchable database of grant-giving charities, some of which help with funeral costs for particular trades, illnesses or circumstances.

6. Reducing the cost itself

Help with paying is only half the answer. The other half is not spending more than you need to.

1. Say your budget out loud

   Tell the funeral director the number you can afford at the start. A good firm will build a funeral to that figure. They cannot do that if they do not know.

2. Compare published prices

   Every UK funeral director must publish a Standardised Price List. Identical funerals can differ by more than a thousand pounds between firms. Compare prices for firms serving Bexley in our directory.

3. Consider an unattended cremation plus your own memorial

   A direct cremation averages £1,628 nationally. Holding your own gathering afterwards costs whatever you choose and is often more personal.

4. Ask about off-peak crematorium slots

   Early morning and mid-week slots are often significantly cheaper. Eltham Crematorium fees, like all council fees, are reviewed each April.

5. Cut the removable extras

   Limousines, embalming where unnecessary, printed orders of service, and elaborate coffins are all optional. Family members can act as bearers.

6. Arrange flowers and catering yourself

   Both are usually far cheaper direct than through the funeral director, and neither affects the funeral itself.

Where to get free, independent advice

• DWP Bereavement Service — handles Funeral Expenses Payment and Bereavement Support Payment claims by phone and can check several benefits in one call
• Citizens Advice — free help with claims, refusals and appeals, including a local Bexley service
• Cruse Bereavement Support — free bereavement counselling and practical guidance
• Turn2us — benefits calculator and grant search
• Down to Earth (Quaker Social Action) — a national service specifically for people struggling with funeral costs; genuinely worth calling

The short version

If you are on a qualifying benefit, claim the Funeral Expenses Payment on form SF200 — before the funeral if you can, and within six months at the latest. If you have lost a spouse or partner, claim Bereavement Support Payment within three months. Check for a prepaid plan, a life policy and a pension. Ask the bank to pay the invoice from the deceased's account. And tell the funeral director your budget on day one.

Nobody should go into debt for a funeral. If you are close to that, stop and ring Down to Earth or Citizens Advice before you sign anything.