Editorial Policy

Save Funeral Costs™ (SFC) exists to provide clear, independent and compassionate information to help people reduce funeral costs and make informed decisions at a difficult time. This Editorial Policy explains how our content is created, reviewed and kept accurate.

Editorial mission

The SFC mission is to ensure that everyone, regardless of income, can access reliable guidance on:

• Affordable funerals
• Funeral Expenses Payment and other government help
• Benevolent funds and charities
• Bereavement support
• Low-cost undertakers, cremations, burials and related services

SFC aims to reduce funeral poverty, prevent unnecessary debt, and give people the confidence to make informed choices.

Editorial independence

Save Funeral Costs is fully independent.

We do not accept payment, sponsorship or gifts in exchange for:

• Listing funeral directors
• Recommending products
• Writing or removing content
• Changing opinions or rankings

Any organisation may be mentioned or linked if it is relevant and helpful to the public, whether or not it has a commercial relationship with SFC.

Our editorial decisions are never influenced by advertisers, affiliate partners or funeral companies.

How content is created

Content on Save Funeral Costs is produced by:

• Founder and editor Steven W. Barratt
• Freelance writers, and researchers working under his direction
  

All content is written in plain English, with the aim of being:

• Accurate
• Practical
• Compassionate
• Easy to understand during a stressful time

SFC tries to avoid unnecessary jargon, sales language or misleading claims.

Sources and research

Where relevant, our content is informed by:

• UK Government guidance (including GOV.UK and DWP sources)
• The Funeral Expenses Payment and related benefit rules
• Charities and support organisations
• The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
• Industry data such as the SunLife Cost of Dying reports

SFC aims to reflect the best available information at the time of writing.

Updates and accuracy

Funeral costs, benefit rules and available support change over time.

SFC  therefore:

• Review key pages regularly
• Update articles when policies or prices change
• Add new information when better or clearer guidance becomes available

Pages may display a “last updated” date to show when the content was most recently reviewed.

Errors and corrections

If you believe any information on Save Funeral Costs is incorrect, we welcome feedback.

Accuracy is important and any genuine error will be corrected.

You can contact via the website contact page.

Commercial relationships

Save Funeral Costs earns income from:

• Affiliate links
• Pay-per-click advertising
• Pay-per-view advertising

If a user clicks an affiliate link and makes a purchase, this may generate a small commission for SFC at no extra cost to the user.

However:

• SFC will still recommend a provider if they offer the best value, even if they do not have an affiliate scheme
• No company can buy a favourable mention or listing

SFC priority is always the public interest.

Non-profit commitment

Save Funeral Costs operates on a non-profit basis.

After covering running costs and maintaining the website:

• 15% of annual income is donated to charities supporting the elderly, end-of-life care and bereavement
• The remaining balance provides an income to maintain SFC and to the founder so that the service can continue

This ensures SFC remains independent, sustainable and free to use.

Relationship with government and charities

Save Funeral Costs is listed on the Department for Work and Pensions’ District Provision Tool (DPT), which is used by DWP staff to signpost bereaved families to support organisations.

Inclusion on the DPT is not an endorsement by the DWP, but confirms that Save Funeral Costs is recognised as a legitimate support resource.

We also refer to and link to a wide range of charities and public bodies where this is helpful to the reader.

Commitment to readers

We understand that people who use Save Funeral Costs are often:

• Bereaved
• Under financial stress
• Making urgent decisions

We therefore commit to:

• Treating readers with respect and empathy
• Providing clear and honest guidance
• Avoiding fear-based or misleading language
• Putting people before profit