An Alabama family checklist for prepaid burial spaces, cemetery services, vaults, and
memorials
Important: This guide helps you ask the right questions before you pay. It does not accuse any
cemetery or person of wrongdoing, and it is not legal advice.
1. Verify who is selling the contract
If you are being offered a preneed cemetery contract – a payment made before a death for cemetery
merchandise or services to be provided later – verify both the business and the person selling it.
Ask for: the business name, its Certificate of Authority number, the salesperson’s full name, and their
Preneed Sales Agent registration.
Alabama requires a valid Certificate of Authority before a person may sell or receive funds for a
preneed contract. Individuals who offer or sign preneed contracts for the public must be registered as
Preneed Sales Agents and affiliated with the Certificate of Authority they represent.
2. Identify exactly what you are buying
Do not rely on “a package.” Request a signed, itemized contract that separates each item and
service:
□ Interment right / burial space □ Opening and closing □ Vault or outer burial container
□ Monument or headstone □ Foundation and installation □ Perpetual or special care
A burial-space sale by itself can be different from a preneed contract if ownership is delivered upon
payment and no future service is included. If you are paying now for work to happen later, ask
whether the agreement is a preneed contract.
3. Get the location and the cemetery records
Before paying, ask the cemetery to write the exact location on your documents: section, lot, and
grave number – or the precise crypt or niche number.
For an Endowment Care Cemetery, Alabama requires records of interment-space owners, the location
of lots, crypts, and niches, a plat map at the cemetery business office, and a file showing the date, lot,
and space number for every burial or entombment.
Ask to see: the map marking your space, the cemetery’s written Rules and Regulations, and your
receipt and contract number.
4. Ask how your payment is protected
For a preneed contract, ask which funding method is written into the contract. Alabama recognizes
these funding vehicles:
Trust Insurance or annuity Surety bond Letter of credit
Ask for the name of the company, trustee, insurer, or financial institution. Do not accept “your money
is safe” as the only answer.
5. Understand Endowment Care
Except for cemeteries operated by government or religious institutions, Alabama cemeteries that
charge fees or sell burial spaces and related services are classified as Endowment Care Cemeteries.
They must maintain an irrevocable endowment-care trust fund for cemetery grounds.
Ask: “Is this an Endowment Care Cemetery? What is your ECC number?” Also ask for the cemetery’s
written Rules and Regulations and the list of owners and directors, which must be available to the
public at its business office.
6. Keep your family protection file
Keep copies of these items together:
□ Signed contract □ Itemized receipt □ Salesperson’s name and registration
□ Cemetery map / plot location □ Cemetery rules □ Headstone or monument order
□ Emails, text messages, and dated photos
For a headstone order, make sure the final written order includes the name spelling, design,
dimensions, material, foundation, installation, responsible company, expected timing, and refund or
cancellation policy.
If something does not match
First, ask the cemetery for a written explanation and keep a copy. If the matter concerns a preneed
sale, salesperson authorization, cemetery contract, or regulated cemetery issue, contact the Alabama
Board of Funeral Service. The Board can provide regulatory information and accepts consumer
complaints. A dispute about land title, ownership, damages, or a specific legal remedy may require an
Alabama attorney.
