Following news regarding the collapse of Safe Hands Funeral Plans, we would like to reassure all our families who have purchased funeral plans through Wathall’s that your plans are managed and administered by Golden Charter Later Life Planning and the funds held securely within the Golden Charter Trust.

We would like to reassure you that we are fully aware of the changes in funeral plan regulation, and are working closely with our plan provider Golden Charter to prepare for the changes. Golden Charter has always been clear that it welcomes greater supervision of the market and was one of the first organisations to submit an application to the FCA. At the time of writing, the FCA has still to publish the outcome of any application, but we, and Golden Charter, are confident that, as one of the big three established funeral plan providers, they will be amongst the first to be approved  You can view the status of funeral plan company FCA applications at www.fca.org.uk.  The webpage is updated regularly.
 
Until the market becomes formally regulated, protection will continue to be provided to all Golden Charter plan holders by the Funeral Planning Authority (FPA). Golden Charter were a founder member of the FPA so you can be reassured that you’ll remain protected until the market moves under the supervision of the FCA on 29 July.

Golden Charter plan holders’ funds are held securely in The Golden Charter Trust, and ring-fenced for future funerals to provide additional protection. The Golden Charter Trust is one of the largest and most transparent trusts in the sector, with full details of funds held and how they are managed available at www.goldenchartertrust.co.uk
 
With something so important, we want to reassure you that your instructions and funeral funds are safe and fully protected. If you would like to discuss you concerns further with Golden Charter, you can contact them on 0800 833 800.