Your FTC Funeral Rule rights: the federal checklist.

The FTC Funeral Rule was adopted in 1984 after decades of documented pricing abuses in the funeral industry. It gives every family the same set of consumer protections, whether they walk into a small independent home in Oak Cliff or a large corporate chain in Plano. The rule is federal, and it applies alongside Texas Occupations Code Chapter 651 and the Texas Funeral Service Commission (TFSC) rules at 22 Tex. Admin. Code Part 10. When something in the two conflicts, the stricter protection wins.

Most Texans never read the Funeral Rule until they are already exhausted, grieving, and sitting in an arrangement conference. That is exactly when the rule matters most. This page is deliberately the federal checklist — the ten rights, their citations in 16 C.F.R. Part 453, and how to enforce them. For the Texas state layer — the 48-hour cremation window, written cremation authorization, TFSC licensing and refrigeration standards — see our state pillar, What the New Texas Death-Care Regulations Mean for Families (2026). For the longer treatment, our pillar page at /funeral-rule-rights.html walks through each one in more depth with sample letters and complaint forms.

1. The right to receive a General Price List (GPL) on request

Under 16 C.F.R. § 453.2(b)(4), any funeral provider must give you a printed General Price List — a full itemized list of goods and services with prices — at the very beginning of any in-person discussion about arrangements. You keep the copy. You do not have to ask twice, sign anything, or provide identification. If the funeral director slides a "package brochure" across the table instead, that is not a GPL and does not satisfy the rule.

2. The right to buy only the items you want

The Funeral Rule prohibits mandatory package pricing. Under § 453.4(b)(1), providers may offer packages, but they must also let you assemble the arrangement piece by piece from the GPL. If you want direct cremation without a viewing, you cannot be forced to buy a service package that bundles in a chapel rental or embalming fee. The one exception is a single "basic services fee" that every provider is allowed to charge for their overhead and required staff time; that fee must be disclosed on the GPL.

3. The right to arrange a cremation without buying a casket

Texas requires only that cremation occur inside a rigid, combustible container. A traditional casket costing several thousand dollars is not required by state or federal law. The Funeral Rule at § 453.3(b) further requires the provider to affirmatively disclose in writing that "you may use an alternative container" for cremation. If you never see that disclosure and are told a casket is required, that is a Funeral Rule violation.

4. The right to have an alternative container accepted

The provider must offer, and honor your selection of, an unfinished wood box, cardboard container, or fiberboard "alternative container" for cremation. These typically cost between $60 and $200, versus $1,500 to $10,000 for a casket. This is a companion to Right 3 and is codified at the same § 453.3(b)(1). Vargas-London includes an alternative container in the published $1,750 direct-cremation price at no extra charge.

5. The right to price disclosure by telephone

Under § 453.2(b)(1), any funeral provider must answer specific questions about the price of goods and services over the telephone. You do not have to give your name, your address, why you are calling, or whose service it is for. Providers who say "we don't quote prices on the phone" or "you have to come in first" are violating the rule. This is the single most-cited Funeral Rule violation in FTC undercover shopper surveys.

6. The right to a written statement of goods and services selected

Before you pay anything, the provider must give you an itemized written Statement of Goods and Services Selected — commonly called the "SGSS" — that lists exactly what you are buying, itemized with prices, plus any legal or cemetery requirements that are driving specific items. This is required by § 453.2(b)(5). If a legal requirement forces you to buy a specific item, the SGSS must cite the specific law or regulation — no vague hand-waving about "it's just required."

7. The right to refuse embalming

Texas does not require embalming for direct cremation, immediate burial, or a service with a closed casket. Under § 453.5, a provider cannot embalm the deceased "for a fee" without either your prior approval or a state or local law that requires it. If a provider embalms without asking, you are not obligated to pay. The 22 Tex. Admin. Code § 203.45 rules governing embalming permit refrigeration as an alternative for private viewings and for any service where an open-casket public viewing is not chosen.

8. The right to accurate information (no misrepresentation)

Sections § 453.3(a) and § 453.3(d) forbid funeral providers from making false claims about legal, cemetery, or crematory requirements. Common misrepresentations the FTC has enforced against include: telling families embalming is required by state law when it is not, claiming caskets slow decomposition, saying a burial vault is required for cremation, or asserting that a specific casket "will preserve the body." Each of these has been the subject of FTC enforcement actions and settled cases.

9. The right to bring in a casket purchased from a third party

The Casket Rule at § 453.4(b)(2) forbids funeral providers from refusing to use — or charging any handling, storage, or "acceptance" fee for — a casket you buy from a third party such as Costco, Walmart, an online retailer, or a custom builder. The provider must accept delivery, must not require you to be present when it arrives, and cannot condition service on where you bought the casket. This rule alone saves families thousands when a third-party casket is chosen.

10. The right to complain — and to have that complaint taken seriously

If you believe any of these rights was violated in Texas, you have two enforcement paths and they are both free.

• Texas Funeral Service Commission (state): file at tfsc.texas.gov or call (888) 667-4881. TFSC investigators typically contact the funeral home within a few weeks. TFSC has authority under Texas Occupations Code Chapter 651 to fine or suspend the establishment license and the funeral director's individual license.
• Federal Trade Commission (federal): file at reportfraud.ftc.gov. FTC does not usually pursue individual restitution but does track patterns for enforcement, and its Funeral Rule Offenders Program (FROP) allows providers with documented violations to enter compliance training in lieu of prosecution — meaning your complaint may directly generate a compliance requirement.

You can also file a complaint with the Texas Office of the Attorney General under Texas Business & Commerce Code § 17.46 (the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act), which provides for private treble-damage lawsuits when deceptive practices are proven.

How to actually use these rights in Texas

Reading a rule and enforcing it in the middle of grief are two very different things. A few practical suggestions:

• Call for prices first. If a provider will not quote by phone, that is a red flag on Right 5 before you have even set foot in the building. Move on.
• Ask for the GPL immediately on arrival — before any discussion of merchandise. Compare it to the packages afterward, not before.
• Read every line on the SGSS before signing. If a "required by law" item appears without a specific statute citation, ask which law. Silence there is a Funeral Rule violation.
• Bring a second person to arrangements. A friend, family member, hospice social worker, or clergy person catches things a grieving spouse or child does not.
• Keep every document. The GPL, casket price list, outer burial container price list, and SGSS are your evidence if a complaint becomes necessary.