How one casket company is disrupting the funeral industry

In the United States two manufacturers control 85% of casket production, with the average casket costing more than $2,000, sold exclusively to funeral homes. Titan Caskets is looking to disrupt the industry by selling its products more cheaply, directly to consumers. Correspondent Luke Burbank looks at how thousands are now finding their loved ones' final resting places on the internet. (This story was originally broadcast April 16, 2023.)
@titancasket #funerals
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[@briangarrow448]

The funeral industry is one of the worst examples of predatory practices that prey upon the grief of consumers. Anything that disrupts that process is a good thing!

[@lvtiguy226]

I agree 💯

[@anastasiabeaverhausen8220]

You said it. They tried to guilt me into buying an urn for my mom's ashes by putting her in a plastic bag in a cardboard box that said something about 'remains' in big bold letters on the side. But I knew my mom would not have wanted me to do that.

[@jedi1967]

I agree 1000%

[@toplarry]

Money is KING, just ask the BIDENS

[@briangarrow448]

@@toplarry Don’t forget the Trumps and the Kushners.

[@dicedrice7216]

It's great that people are being made aware that they have more choices. Several years ago I unfortunately had to have my late husband cremated -- which was against his wishes -- because I couldn't afford a casket and traditional burial. Funeral directors really take advantage of grieving families.

[@boycott2720]

I am positive of two things. If he was in your situation, he would do the same, and you would be understanding about his situation. I also don't think it meant that much to him, or he would have made arrangements before hand. I have a friend who really wants to be buried, and they bought their casket and made arrangements in their 20's. It meant that much to them. We used to joke about making a coffee table out of the casket until they needed it.

[@sportsmedia25]

It's not like your late husband is going to retaliate. Burial/cremation is a process that has to be done, you did the best you could.

[@sweetcheeks5775]

i actually think cremation is more beautiful and respectful.

[@jeanettel4840]

I'm so sorry that circumstances made a bad situation even worse. My condolences on your loss.

[@toplarry]

Just like insurance companies. I don't know how they sleep at night. No shame

[@themadwomanskitchen9732]

I'm SO glad you interviewed Caitlyn! I have been watching her for years on KZbin.

[@skruloos1]

Shes probably about the most honest funeral director out there..I, too,have been watching her videos for years..

[@cosmicinsane516]

The best laugh we had when my grandpa died was the funeral director trying to guilt us into buying a fancy casket with the line “Don’t you think that’s what he would have wanted?” We laughed right out of his office. My grandpa would have laughed in his face himself.

[@FYMASMD]

Good for you!!👍😎

[@samuelschick8813]

My mother passed in 2014 and as custom family sat front row. Well mom is up front with the top lid open and daughter is sitting with her three children all is quiet and solemn. Then a loud voice breaks the air from my 4 year old grandson to his mother " Mommy, are they going to put granny back together after they cut her in half?" Everyone breaks out laughing and mom would have also if she was able. Turns out daughter and her children watched a magic show on TV a few days before the funeral. In the show the magician cut a woman in half trick and he remembered it.

[@brendapeterson4637]

I bought my Husband's Titan casket online and it was Beautiful without the markup !! It was delivered on time to the funeral home without any problem. I knew about this before he passed away. Know that funeral homes are big business. My casket is already picked out. So glad your letting people know about this. Another thing is a body doesn't need to be embalmbed if your not having a large viewing. If it is just a few people you can still see them within a short period of time then the funeral home can close the casket if outhers are going to come to pay their respects. Big savings !!!

[@brendajones5895]

The problem without embalming opens the door to health and sanitation problems. Therefore maybe green burial would be a great option.

[@marylavetta8136]

Thanks for sharing your experience. Extremely helpful.

[@mrgreene3290]

Embalming might be required by the cemetery or the local community depending on city/county laws, as well as the need for a vault for the casket to be placed in at the cemetery plot. You should be able to find those requirements online at your local government site, or your funeral home should know the rules and laws.

[@jameshhenderson8243]

@@mrgreene3290 Better do some more research.

[@daveh4334]

My Mom recently passed, and per her request was cremated. She told me a few years ago what kind of urn she wanted for burial alongside Dad who passed a few years ago. I found an urn matching her description on Amazon for $110. It was delivered speedily to me, I took it to the funeral home, and they gladly put her ashes into it for me. They said that only occasionally does a customer bring in their own urn, and they were impressed with the quality of mine (for the record, I was too). They said that they had a similar urn that they sell for $2000.

[@Hoybabe1]

I also bought an amazing veterans urn online when my husband passed away 3 months ago.....$189

[@towanda1067]

My mother discovered buying a casket online when my Dad died. Because the price was so good, she bought one for him and bought one for herself which the company held until she needed it. She was buried in a beautiful baby blue casket, her favorite color. I would definitely recommend this route as a way to save money.

[@imtinanc]

What a beautiful testimony to your dear beloved mother. That is my favorite color. I was wondering if you could tell me what online company you went with. God Bless! You are in my loving thoughts and healing prayers! ♥️ Tina Mills

[@jimtownsend7899]

While taking college courses in the late 80s, I led a group marketing project based on this basic idea. Back then, there was no internet, so my research was quite difficult. No casket company or funeral home would divulge to me the wholesale costs of caskets. The only person who would tell me anything gave me the price range of caskets, and when questioned, admitted to me the main reason for the price difference between caskets is the length of the warranty. The least expensive had a 10-year airtight/watertight warranty, and the top of the line was 30 years. I asked the obvious question of how would families know, and he evaded the question, simply saying, "It helps give families peace of mind to know Grandma is safe." This is the dastardliness of the profession. Preying on bereaved families, pressure-selling elaborate Tupperware containers, as if Grandma needs to be kept fresh for some reason. Personally, my wife and I will be cremated, as will my Mom. And do you know what I have chosen for my urn? A black plastic protein powder jar, with the label replaced with one that will have my info on it. Good enough to hold me, stashed away on a shelf behind a marble plaque in a National Cemetery. We're going to get a new body on the last day anyway, so that's to what I look forward.

[@larrytate4586]

You know what is important and this body is but a shell and our eternal body will be beyond anything we can imagine. Your comment is the best. I love it.

[@sherylcrowe3255]

Fascinating thank you for sharing

[@alexapuerta]

I have never understood the morbidity of caskets and preserving a dead body, unless it's for science or educational value. What is the point? How does it keep "Grandma...safe"? Funerals and caskets are for the living. I want a natural/green burial in a nature preserve cemetery so my body compost can feed the land.

[@crptnite]

Donated my body to Science when i was fifteen. Take what still works and give it to those in need. Let med students hack up my cadaver for their final exams. Throw whatever's left on the Body Farm for the Forensic Students to analyze and learn from. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy 😎👍🏽

[@thisismyusername6717]

So, you think you will be born again? Interesting. I think we will either know nothing or be sent to live with our savior, jesus christ. I believe in hell, i just dont think everyone who doesnt get sent to heaven gets sent to hell and vice versa. Its like the end for you. And that is either peacefull for you or like me, terrifying. I dont want to go to hell and i dont want my conscience to just end into nothingness.

[@CathyS_Bx]

My sister was buried in a shroud in a cemetary set aside for natural burials in Maine. It was a secular situation and it was holy.

[@francesrobinson1335]

What a lovely way to lay a loved one to rest. Perfect.

[@NightOwlTX]

Pleasantly suprised to see Caitlin here 🤗

[@ldebrobander]

Funerals are for the living, not really for the dead. The spirit has left the body. Remember that a deceased body is referred to as a corpse. It's an empty shell void of life. Don't wait until someone you love dies before you choose to honor them. Honor them while they are still present! Pay tribute to them while they are alive and can enjoy and appreciate it. I think the worst insult is for people to show up at someone's funeral who chose not to be a part of that person's life in the first place.

[@virginiathomas2581]

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@jaydibernardo4320]

Now someone needs to take on the ridiculous prices of weddings!

[@robbank8027]

Why? Just go to the court house and have party afterwards in your backyard.

[@RoastBeefSandwich]

It's called go to the magistrate's office or the courthouse and get the judge to do it for the cost of the marriage certificate.

[@violetviolet888]

A lot of people do it on their own in their terms.

[@bxb590]

or divorce !

[@MistiMc76]

I'm glad someone is creating options for consumers. It's about time. ❤

[@violetviolet888]

There is also Recompose: Human Composting, hand woven baskets, and green burials.

[@harveyruss8848]

actually just purchased one from them 6 weeks ago. arrived extremely fast and they even called me on a weekend at some crazy hour (which is good...because i did not think they were even open). i highly recommend.

[@boycott2720]

Do they have one with a flat top and wheels so I can use it as a coffee table until I need it? It would be like one of those storage coffee tables.

[@laynavillabells4056]

What was the shipping like?

[@eckankar7756]

I was a Hospice RN for 17 years. So very few patient families had prepared for funeral expenses before hand. It was so difficult to get families to start considering final expenses while the patient was still alive so there could be some plan in place when the time comes. Almost all waited until the patient died then were in a shock, panic what to do. We all know it's coming, prepare early, start a sinking fund, something so when the time does come that's one thing you don't have to focus on, how to pay for the expenses.

[@Sacto1654]

This type of disruption is *LONG OVERDUE* . If there is one place where people get woefully overcharged, it's funeral services. Nobody nowadays wants to pay over US$10,000 for a funeral.

[@WhispersFromTheDark]

By law the funeral home has to accept an outside casket if it is delivered before the time of viewing and or burial. If they insist that you buy theirs (marked up 400%) or more then they are not only lying to you, but are committing a crime.

[@violetviolet888]

What does one look up to find this law?

[@dmills2010]

This is true.

[@BuddhismAsALifePractice]

@@violetviolet888 Federal Trade Commission Consumer Advise/The FTC Funeral Rule

[@russbear31]

Personally, I would choose either cremation or being buried in a simple pine box without embalming. That's the way people were buried for thousands of years. If it was good enough for your great-great-grandmother, then it's good enough for you. All of the modern funeral gadgets are a waste of money.

[@gastondraco5906]

And It’s against the law soooooo

[@ytr3488]

​@@gastondraco5906says who you?

[@ericbitzer5247]

​@@gastondraco5906What law? There is no law.

[@scrambler69-xk3kv]

There are videos here on You Tube on how to build a pine box coffin.

[@hummersd]

With the mortician on this subject -- burials and memorial services need to be rethought. Not against any wishes or traditions or trying to save a buck, but caskets go into a tomb and then in the ground... forever, which takes up space. If you believe the body is still the person and want to keep them in a permanent structure, so be it, but no other creature on earth uses this method. I'm hoping by the time I'm gone, the more green burials are more prevalent (NY and CA and WA have already approved the laws, now we just need the businesses to sprout up). We don't want cremation to create more greenhouse gasses, we don't want embalming fluids to pollute the earth, we need better alternatives to return the body to the earth as naturally as we can.🌴

[@RaymondHng]

There's human composting. It's covered in Caitlin Doughty's Ask a Mortician KZbin channel.

[@clbudd]

That's because funerals are for the living and not the dead.

[@skruloos1]

That's what I never understood..why would you put into the ground a dead body filled with some of the most toxic chemicals known,knowing that those chemicals will Leach into the earth and possibly the water?if you ever saw how an embalmer dresses,you would shake your head too...

[@RaymondHng]

@@skruloos1 The embalmed body is inside a casket and the casket is encased in a vault when it is buried.

[@skruloos1]

Where I live,embalmed bodies havent always been in vaults..embalming has been around alot longer..

[@bobbrinkerhoff3592]

There's another alternative depending on where you live . The Amish are known for making fine furniture such as desks , tables and chairs etc , but did you know they also build caskets ? We got my mother a beautiful solid oak casket for less than a third of what the funeral director wanted .

[@violetviolet888]

@bobbrinkerhoff3592: There is also Recompose: Human Composting, hand woven baskets, shrouds, and green burials.

[@bobbrinkerhoff3592]

@@violetviolet888 if you're old enough to remember when Johnny Carson hosted " The Tonight Show " he had the ultimate solution, just put him in a Hefty trash bag and set him out at the curb come Tuesday .

[@alexaales7937]

what i love about the american funeral culture is the wake, people coming together sharing stories, as a german i was not used to that. what i hate is the embalming, pumping a lot of chemicals into the bodies. what does that do to the environment??? and those caskets are just gaudy. if i've had the choice i would love to go back into the soil in a burlap sack :-).

[@beataylorsdeeppinkecstasy9013]

If the chemicals go into a body, and the body goes into a sealed casket, what's the problem?

[@Tamara-id1pe]

Natural burials are becoming more common. They don’t have a celebration of life in Germany?

[@patriciafeeley7997]

Wakes are a blast , it is where the real celebration of a person’s life happens, and grief is shared in an open embracing manner

[@alexaales7937]

@@Tamara-id1pe naa, there is usually a church thing and then we go to the grave. maybe afterwards when we have coffee and cake, but that is usually between a few people and not someone going to the podium speaking to everyone in the room. that's why I like us wakes.

[@alexaales7937]

@@beataylorsdeeppinkecstasy9013 that's even worse, so the world is full of these caskets filled with poison that never dissolve. what ever happened to becoming one with nature after death? not in those caskets!

[@marksellinger3736]

Recommend you pre-arrange your funeral services. Did that with mom and dad in 2008. Saved about 1800 dollars when mom died in 2013 and over 3k in fees when dad died in 2023. Lock in the prices with the funeral home and cemetery. Those prices will go up, but you wont pay anymore! As Kaitlyn says, funerals need to be re-thought. Not many cemeteries being developed as the land is worth more with houses on it (property tax income).

[@catzenhouse]

Word of caution when pre-arranging: my parents and Dad's sister and husband bought funeral plans, plots and interment places when a new cemetery and funeral home was opened back in the early 60's. The funeral company filed bankruptcy years later. When my father passed away the company that took over the bankrupt company said they did not have to honor the previous contracts and wanted to charge my mother an additional $8000. So my family made arrangements for my father's cremation elsewhere while my sister-in-law, a paralegal, went to the County Courthouse to check into the bankruptcy deal. She found that the new owners did, in fact, have to honor the pre-arranged contracts. Two months later, long after our friends and family had dispersed, my father was finally interred as he should have been all along in a tacky interment "ceremony". My mother suffered a great deal over this and was devastated by the betrayal of the company.

[@SandySez]

@@catzenhouse I generally don't trust anyone trying to 'sell' me anything. 36 yrs ago when burying my husband, I bought a double plot in a large, privately-owned local cemetery that has been there for many, MANY decades..... 30 yrs later I started getting letters and phone calls from the new corporate beast that bought the cemetery, (under the guise of wanting to 'update their records'), but in reality, just trying to SELL me a pre-plan package. They kept contacting me for over a year. The only thing I'm 'pre-paying' for is the plot of land which I have a recorded DEED to. Everything we need is now owned by corporate beasts, who are often owned by even bigger beasts, then sold back & forth between each other. From our med care, banking, food supply to well ... funerals & burials. There's actually a very good documentary called "The Corporation" which exposes how these collective beasts share the exact same traits as Psychopaths. It's so sad that your Mother and family had to go through that. My point is, if another privately-owned entity had purchased the business, it's highly likely she would never have been treated that way.

[@madalynmcgoun8066]

I came across Titan Caskets while on the WalMart app. Couldn't believe the price and the beautiful products they offered. As a US Army veteran, I especially like the casket with Army insignia inside on the lid. Black on black. It's beautiful and can be delivered directly to funeral home. Cost effective and a beautiful way to honor a veteran.

[@deborahshallin5843]

You may even have it delivered to your home and put in storage or use it as a coffee table like my friend did

[@cathyrainey6176]

I know that it's a time of grief for the family and they don't know what to do in some cases. But to buy a beautiful expensive casket with all sorts of bells and whistles just to be buried forever is nuts (in my opinion).

[@lightmarker3146]

I some places those bells come as standard accessories, just in case of accidental burial 😊

[@b.j.hinote4301]

When my mom passed i went and they said you want a sign in book. I said i guess. 275.00 dollars i could have went to halmark and paid 25.00 but i didnt know. Till i got the bill.

[@PMUP2016]

As an ex Funeral Director I say about time! One huge corporation was allowed to buy up most of the funeral homes, chemical/supply companies and yes casket companies!

[@davidmorley7778]

I am contemplating on building my own pine casket and using it as a bookcase until the need arises.

[@brendajones5895]

This issue is beginning to make me rethink becoming a funeral director but I take the boards on Saturday 😢

[@Kristin49]

Do you think that companies like this one who are selling directly to the customer will make it even harder for the remaining family run businesses to stay open?

[@violetviolet888]

@@brendajones5895 There is also Recompose: Human Composting, hand woven baskets, shrouds, and green burials.

[@DEADIKATED]

"Dying Ain't no Kind of Way to Make a Living, and the People at the Funeral Home are Making a Killing"

[@jeffjeannette9364]

I lost my mom and brother two years apart, and though our family was fortunate enough to be able to afford it, we were by no means wealthy. I know it put a terrible strain on my father, who was already under way more than he should have been. This would have been a much needed break from that strain. Bout time someone is "disturbing" the industry.

[@Hybrid.flower]

Thank you so much for this information!!!! My husband and I have been setup all of our funeral arrangements and this is a game changer

[@violetviolet888]

There is also Recompose: Human Composting | Ecological Death Care | A licensed, full-service, green funeral home in Seattle offering human composting. As the first human composting company in the world

[@rickprusak9326]

One thing I found out when my father wanted to be cremated when he died. My father died in the local hospital. A lady friend of mine since 9th grade in high school registered into nursing school the week after high school graduation. She knew my entire family for many years after freshman year. Years later, when I called my lady friend to inform her that my dad passed away, and he wanted to be cremated, my lady friend told me to make sure that it's my father's body in the crematory casket, (made of hard cardboard) before his body is shoved into the fire chamber. Because she had witnessed many times working at the hospital she worked in, that when a "fresh" dead body is going to be quickly cremated, a body that has been donated to the local university for medical science, and was used by the school of mortuary science to train funeral directors on embalming practices, and other related procedures in obtaining a state license to become a funeral director or funeral staff member, is swapped out. The old shelf used up body from the school of mortuary science is replaced by a newer "fresh" body at the crematory. And unless someone in the family does not check to make sure the loved one is actually going into the fire chamber, no one will definitely know that the ashes of their loved one is actually in the ash holding chamber or urn. I had the opportunity to directly tell the 2 crematory staff guys that I wanted to personally see the face of my father before he was shoved into the crematory chamber. They looked at me and then looked at each other very suspiciously. I didn't just go by the toe tag. I had stood over his entire body when the casket lid was removed by the 2-man crew. As I watched my father's body get shoved into the fire chamber and saw the door close and lock, I moved over to the side of the fire chamber and through the three glass portholes, I saw the yellow and blue flames begin there job. I never saw the outline of the casket, just the flames covering the inside of the porthole glass. The fire crew then informed me that it would take 2 and 1/2 hours for the creation to be complete, with another hour for the chamber to cool enough to reopen and remove the ashes and remaining bone fragments to be crushed using a spiked kitchen rolling pin looking tool to pulverize the larger bone pieces to fit into the urn. Back then, in December 1980, a cremation cost was only $100. There's big money in donated organs, and bodies donated for all types of science experiments and at schools for mortuary science, like the mortuary science school in my area of the city. Before Covid, the local area television stations reported of a few funeral homes had stored a few hundred dead bodies in their funeral home garages without air conditioning and charged families for burial in cemeteries that had empty Graves in them. It was suspected that these funeral home directors were selling the dead bodies on the black market to colleges and companies throughout the country. PLUS, the Detroit Morgue had "lost" some bodies that were supposed to be delivered to area funeral homes to be prepared for funeral services and cemetary burials. Someone is making big money on dead people. Just like my long-time lady friend warned me about checking up on my dead father's body. So people, if your loved one wants to be cremated, make sure someone in the family if not you yourself, personally look at the face of your deceased lived one to be cremated and not go by the toe tag before they take that last trip of identification before the crematory door shuts before the flames begin.

[@edwardzarnowski5558]

How sad ... even in death..

[@JohnnyAngel8]

I'd buy one but I don't have the space for it. Maybe I'd consider one if it functioned as a coffee table AND casket. 😉

[@skruloos1]

I turned mine into a trailer..so I can take it with me..

[@Austin8thGenTexan]

The biggest mark-up on consumer durable goods? Furniture and caskets.

[@Kristin49]

Jewelry mark up is huge

[@Austin8thGenTexan]

@@Kristin49 Sorry, I didn't think about that (diamond engagement rings, etc). Good call. Besides jewelry, I see a lot of advertising for new window replacement and filter leafguard gutters for the home. Makes me wonder about those!? 😲

[@deniseeulert2503]

My funeral and all the things that go with it are now planned and paid for. But before I handled the financial end I specified to my family that the casket should be the cheapest thing avaiable, the kind of thing John Does get interred in. And planning the funeral itself ahead of time is a blessing not only to family but to whoever, like the pastor, will be conducting it. Our congregation has a filing cabinet for the plans people want to have on file. I turned mine in the the pastor said "OH, I wish more people did thisl"

[@virginiawilkinson5038]

I had daddy cremated, but for viewing they placed him in the most beautiful casket. I never expected that. Very kind.

[@mauricekiner1835]

❤losing several loved ones, this is a breath of FRESH AIR ❤

[@violetviolet888]

@mauricekiner1835 I'm sorry for your losses. There are more: Recompose: Human Composting, hand woven baskets, shrouds, and green burials.

[@Mary-fv4bn]

The scalping by funeral homes is a damn shame .

[@W.I.F.E]

I’m sure cremation rate is only high because the costs of funerals currently.

[@righteousbyfaithinChrist]

Good work!!! Saving grieving people another debt out the door.

[@KG12KG]

If one donates ones body to a medical school, one can totally skip the funeral expenses. And the family can grieve or celebrate life as they see fit.

[@laurenbaker3198]

My father did this and it was a great decision. He was later cremated and buried at their expense.

[@SassyCassie17]

Yea until you find out Mom was used as a prop on a military based and blown up. Happened to a guy. He thought she would only be used to teach autopsy students.

[@billbright1755]

I’ve never understood the thought processing behind preserving the body. It’s served it’s purpose and is not needed anymore. You move to a spiritual form and the body is now ready to return to organic composition.

[@violetviolet888]

Federal Trade Commission: The funeral provider may not refuse, or charge a fee, to handle a casket bought elsewhere, and a provider offering cremations must make alternative containers available. You can bring the a cardboard box or a $100 urn for ashes. There is also Recompose: Human Composting, hand woven baskets, shrouds, and green burials.

[@1992DJP]

I see where Costco is also selling coffins

[@kibblenbits]

I'm in my 70's, and in my state, along with the casket, it's the law that you have to buy a vault, for the casket to be put into, in the grave. When my mother died (she wanted a casket burial, my sister and I prepaid it), they had three different levels of pricing, just for these vaults, to make you feel cheap, if you didn't get the best/highest priced one. Needless to say, it didn't work with me. Opening and closing of the grave is also extra (where our plots are, it's $500. to bury a casket and $100. to bury a cremation). This is why I will be cremated, with no urn purchased from a funeral home, and my son/daughter-in-law are well aware of this. My ashes will be put into another container, which I already have, along with the ashes of my cremated pet's. Ashes are always returned in a plastic bag, in a cardboard box, if you don't buy an urn from the funeral home, just another attempt to guilt you into buying. Our family plot's are paid for, so no further costs there, and I don't want a funeral service/visitation (if the kids want to have a memorial get together, that's up to them). I'm researching headstone's online, too. If I want to spend $8-$10k on something, I'll do it while I'm alive, not after I'm dead!

[@sandrajones651]

When my dad passed we did the whole funeral thing. We bought the casket from the director and everything was under 5K including transporting my dad over 200 miles. That to us was a great deal. Now for the rest of us we are being cremated. Even my mom.

[@spicecd]

I remember me and my mom seeing a casket at Costco a few years ago. It was so out of place but also eye opening as we thought they were only sold through funeral homes.

[@lilychu8912]

Yes, Costco has been selling caskets for years. We saw the ad display when we were being checked out one day. Another option I've thought about - although hopefully my time is far off - is simple burial in an environmentally friendly manner in designated park. "Green burial"

[@cliffnelson1174]

The paint on these is just awesome.....I am surprised this wasn't done way sooner.

[@shawngregg3796]

Another option available is "Natural buriel". With no caskets or embalming. Just dig the hole and place nody wrapped in a sheet.

[@ridingtheroad185]

My Grandmother made and paid for her funeral in 1973 when my Grandpa died. She died in 2003. Man did she make a good decision! 30 years of mark ups that she didn't get charged for!

[@joncampos-cw2tk]

So glad they included Caitlyn in the story. Go, girl!!

[@ebybeehoney]

Why do we need to be buried in a casket at all? Rent the box, buy the liner...

[@libertyann439]

The box is for display at the service. I think they are too pretty to go in the ground.

[@jeepthing98]

As I get older I find myself thinking about what my final wishes are more and more often. Not what we want to think about but that I just have to. I used to be against cremation, not for religious reasons but probably for silly reasons like "fire" when at that point it doesnt matter. I feel like if I make it to 80+, that I want to be cremated. Maybe some remaining friends/family would visit a resting place if it were to happen beforehand.

[@weebunny]

Many cemeteries will allow cremated remains to be interred in a cemetery plot (with headstone, the whole deal) if you think your family and friends would like to have a resting place to visit to remember you.

[@violetviolet888]

@jeepthing98: There is also Recompose: Human Composting, hand woven baskets, shrouds, and green burials.

[@antman5972]

When you think about it. It's a box that's going in the ground or in the incinerator that you most likely will never see. The deceased will R.I.P. just as comfortable in $1,000 casket as they would in a $10,000. Who is there to impress at that point?

[@gaelspradleymurray8203]

It's a great story, and greatly appreciated. Thank you

[@coleengoodell7523]

I don't want my worn out now useless to me dead flesh in one of those boxes. My spirit will no longer need it. Cremation is cheap and hopefully has very little impact on the environment that my children and grandchildren will be living in. Nor do I want them to keep my ashes around to make them feel sad when they look at it. My wish is that my ashes be used in the ground to nourish a sapling that will hopefully grow into a beautiful shade tree for future generations.

[@DonShitzInPantz]

Funeral homes were scanners and price gouging. They took advantage of ppl griefs. It was very sad to discuss items on catalogue like shopping for your love ones. They already dead funerals are for the living But to up the ante and show off put yourself or your loved one in debt when you can’t afford the cost is very sad. Cremation. Circle of life! And bravo to Titan to not price gouging ppl during their most vulnerable times! 💙

[@bellford7067]

my family just purchase a army casket from them a month ago and it was so much better than the one the funeral home had for the army

[@maxlinder5262]

Try..Human composting.... Much cleaner....😊

[@EliseGraham-bu5xm]

I agree

[@violetviolet888]

Recompose: Human Composting | Ecological Death Care | A licensed, full-service, green funeral home in Seattle offering human composting. As the first human composting company in the world, Hand Woven Basket Coffings: A natural and sustainable choice, made from weaving materials such as willow, rattan, seagrass, reed, bamboo, or other, Natural Burial aka Green Burial where you are buried without a casket. By Law: Federal Trade Commission: The funeral provider may NOT refuse, or charge a fee, to handle a casket bought elsewhere, and a provider offering cremations must make alternative containers available. You can bring the a cardboard box or a $100 urn for ashes.

[@laural5177]

My husband died in1994. His oak casket alone cost $10,000.

[@edwardzarnowski5558]

I'm sure it was beautiful though.

[@chrisfinch8637]

Anytime I see a casket, it gives such a grim feeling inside…..literally.

[@geedubb2005]

I’m 100% with you. There’s no way I want to be locked in one of these boxes. No embalming and absolutely no trocar to be used on me. I’ve seen it done and that just ain’t right.

[@EricaChristinaLopez]

Thank you for sharing this story!! I think it’s great to know there are options. In 2020- I lost both of my parents to Covid-19, they were only in their 50’s. I was so distraught I didn’t even think to shop around for a casket. Both of the funerals combined- less than a month apart- was $33,000.00. It was my first time in life (at 35 years old) losing a loved one and the planning was up to me. I wish I knew then what I know now.

[@jkdee647]

God bless, you. I pray the Lord gives you further peace.

[@MrMattDat]

Great piece and oh, so true! So many people just get taken advantage of when taking care of a loved one that passed. So many choices online!!

[@missfirenice1421]

For all I remember, you could buy castkets at Costco.

[@collinreesejones5525]

Been in the death care industry for 40 years....I LOVE THIS!!!! FANTASTIC!!!!

[@zbaby82]

It's still too expensive to die. The industry needs to be intensely regulated.

[@tylerlittle2689]

It is intensely regulated.

[@mrgreene3290]

Ultimately, we are all going to die. It's extremely hard to leave family behind to make decisions about our final resting place when families would want to do what they believe you would have wanted done. As a culture in the US, we need to stop ignoring discussions about what to do when we pass and what our wishes are, so talking about it early will put the whole family at ease knowing they are indeed doing what you would have wanted. Don't wait till it's too late.

[@kennethhowell1272]

Years ago I "actually" worked at a casket factory. Back then the preformed metal parts were welded together, primed, painted then lined. The casket was basically a cabinet, with just a different purpose. Weird thing was the small casket company had payroll issues, which was nuts considering the demand for caskets at that time.

[@heidikatzer9363]

Love they did a story about this topic and bring in the best expert around!

[@thesharingonwarrior]

Really wanted to try and do something like this when my dad passed earlier this month. My mom refused tho because she thought the funeral home owners would be upset or not accept it. I didn’t wanna argue with her cuz she’s really stubborn and hardheaded especially with me when she makes her mind on any decision. We got a good wooden casket for my dad but holy jeez it was $5K. I really wish my mom woulda considered outside options cuz she really struggled back and forth for over a week to try and get everything paid in full so that we could give my dad his services and burial

[@zz449944]

Casket RENTAL is a modern option. The deceased is presented in a casket for the funeral services, then later transferred to a cheaper coffin for burial or sent for cremation without the fancy expensive casket. Many cemeteries require a burial VAULT, but the casket inside does not have to be a fancy one.

[@Kaaaaammmm]

Just checked their website and the cheapest, not counting the pine box, was 1299.

[@jreese8284]

We had a casket made by a family member who worked at a cabinet company. So meaningful.

[@CBReal1290]

Thank you for making this topic newsworthy

[@michaeldougherty8344]

Thank you for the video

[@skurosu7335]

It`s about time! What a great gift to so many families. Cemeteries need to rethink how they do business too!

[@marthahairston2642]

This is so informative. Thank you so much.

[@violetviolet888]

@marthahairston2642, There is also Recompose: Human Composting, hand woven baskets, shrouds, and green burials.

[@b.visconti1765]

I think people got use to not having a casket during the Virus years.. Especially finding out how theft was the norm for some funeral homes😢

[@michaelmerritt9657]

My friend died last year and I’m the funeral home definitely tried to get as much as they can. Most Funeral homes suck

[@northernbettygirl]

I have looked at Titan's website myself. They are very nice. I personally lean towards a simple natural wood one, but much nicer than just a pine box, although they make those nice too!

[@eaeangel5641]

im a mortuary student, There are so many things the FTC has done to make Funeral Homes fair. There are very few Non-declinable fees and you can really pick and choose what you need instead of buying a packaged service! Talk to your local funeral homes! ask them about it! any good Funeral Director should be happy to inform you on these choices. I want to see more people learn about this and understand what they are paying for and how they can make it more affordable!

[@thenext9537]

Good for them! Having been in this situation a few times, this would have been nice. Now I know!

[@f4cphantom2]

I don't go to cemeteries because everyone there gives me the cold shoulder.

[@jayer-su3hu]

Because of how predatory these funeral homes are I'd have to wonder if one they found out you went elsewhere for the casket if they wouldn't retaliate by jacking up prices on everything else you use them for. Or cutting corners but still charging the sh!+ outta you. It's ridiculous smh

[@wvnovello]

Caitlin Dougherty is great. She talks at length about choice in the funeral industry. The funeral home should sell you a cardboard box if you asked for one. Not only is the casket industry a monopoly, so is the funeral home business. There's just a handful of companies that own the vast majority of funeral homes.

[@raphaeldelaghetto85]

Another alternative I only recently found out about is a natural burial. It basically means skipping the embalming chemicals and fancy casket altogether. Your loved one is laid to rest in a biodegradable casket or shroud. It’s a fraction of the cost of a traditional western burial.

[@daddygrace253]

Most states in the United States have laws against natural burials.

[@raphaeldelaghetto85]

@@daddygrace253 It’s not outright illegal anywhere in the U.S. but restrictions vary from state to state. I think as more people learn of it as an option, state laws will catch up to make it more widely available.

[@paulstein7369]

They should offer wraps. Personalize it completely.

[@greatdane4485]

Not all funeral homes or funeral directors are trying to scam you. I work in the funeral industry and our average priced traditional funeral is around $8,000. If you treat people with compassion and respect the money part always takes care of itself.

[@bxb590]

I worked in my father's funeral home with two brothers for 40 years. There was never any money to pay us. Any "profit" went to pay the heat and light bill. My father died virtually penniless and never got a grave stone.

[@GypsyTheGoatOnTube]

Great news!! Checking this out

[@LtPowers]

Me before watching the video: Oh, I wonder what Caitlin from Ask a Mortician would think of this. Me during the video: Never mind!

[@donnapollock]

I bought my brothers Casket on line. It was solid wood and just Beautiful it was so nice and had everything It cost us $1000 and it was delivered to The Funeral Home...

[@lightmarker3146]

Ten years ago when lost and driving about , I went up to a business to ask directions. They were closed but when open , sold caskets . The window displays of caskets were weird . I told my husband by the time we found the address we would be ready for lasting rest.

[@ilovesilver205]

I convinced my father in love to buy a casket online for my mother in love and we saved BIG!!!! They just delivered it to the funeral home. It was one of the best decisions ever made!!!!

[@BMP556]

My sister had cancer and died unexpectedly within 6 months and we couldn’t have a burial bc we couldn’t afford the casket at the time. So the funeral home held her until we could pay for it.

[@laurencebrooks7699]

Good for them; I wanted to do this 30 years ago, but ran into so many roadblocks. Im glad consumers have options.

[@reneallison2336]

Our family ordered a beautiful casket from Costco. Sooo much cheaper. The shipment had to go to a funeral home, which wasn't an issue at all. The shipping was fast also.

[@elizabethtetley2526]

How many ppl realise you do NOT have to use a funeral home. You can do a funeral yourself.

[@user-pg7cx9wo1m]

Really ?

[@FatManWalking18]

FYI, Titan sells urns on their Amazon store

[@yvettestamps9649]

THANK U...❤️

[@cjritch11]

One may save on a casket but you still need a vault. There are reasons that more and more people are going to cremation in the USA. No casket or vault plus you save money overall for a love one's celebration of life service.

[@staceylockhart7866]

That's exactly what I said after I saw this. The casket still has to be put in a vault. What's that cost??,

[@MissMarchHare]

Some states demand that? .. If an unembalmed body is simply put in the dirt, shroud, pine wood box, or my personal favorite, composted, why would you need a vault?

[@elizadawne3896]

Not all places need a vault. When we my dad was buried we did not have to have a vault. It depends on local laws.

[@Kristin49]

@@MissMarchHarepart of it is because without one when the body decomposes the dirt will sink in leaving bunches of sunken in patches of dirt and make caring for the cemetery lawn much more difficult and not as pretty. Then they have to pay someone to back-fill the sunken places. That’s just one reason, I’m sure there are others.

[@jenniferrucker2266]

When purchasing a casket from a third-party vendor, the size of the decedent must be taken into account. The standard inside width of a metal casket is 23 inches wild a standard inside width of a what casket is about 22. The standard internal length is 75 inches. If the decedent is oversize, this could be a big problem. If you are purchasing a casket online or from any third-party vendor, I would encourage you to ask questions about the casket you are purchasing.

[@sallyintucson]

Caitlin Doughty discusses this topic on her YT site Ask a Mortician. She’s very to the point on many subjects in that field.

[@davewhite113]

Your information on the size of a standard casket is incorrect. Check with a funeral home to get the correct numbers.

[@dw7845]

It’s about time👏🏽

[@MrTommyboy68]

I am going the natural burial route. The ONLY expense for me is the plot and a linen shroud. No fuss, no muss, no OUTRAGEOUS fees. At least if in the future if they need to dig us up, there won't be anything left except fillings and whatever surgical implants may be inside. HOWEVER if you received radiation therapy for cancer, you cannot be buried there. If you are cremated, there is a separate section. I am also having my executor go to the site just before I am brought up and he is going to drop all of my silver coins in the hole and throw a little dirt on top. Take THAT worthless family. AND my dog can also be buried there cremated or not.

[@psquared5574]

you better check the state and/or county laws regarding minimum requirements for burial. I was surprized when a friend in OK was buried. Family wanted just a pine box, but state would not allow it due to ground water protections!

[@MrTommyboy68]

@@psquared5574 In my hick state we have ONE state certified "natural burial" cemetery and for some odd reason, we do not allow alkaline hydrolysis (dissolving you in a vat of lye (think of Vincent Price) and flush you down the drain. So, yes, I have researched all options and most times a state or county or even local municipal government are in bed with funeral directors and that is why many require a "sealed liner" into which the coffin is placed (to preserve the deceased ones remains). It's all about the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. Ever since cremations have jumped in popularity, funeral homes were losing money and many states now REQUIRE a sealed container" into which the urn is placed. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$