Safe Luxury

Are burial vaults a funeral scam operation?

I recently bought two for family members. Designer vaults. ?? I thought they were a tad pricey. Nobody ever sees the damn things, since they're in the ground before the guest of honor arrives. Aren't they, basically, a functional thing to protect the casket in the ground? And wouldn't simple concrete serve the same protective function?

Public Comments

1. I guess people like to "honour" the dead by making sure they use the most ornate vaults possible. Really, though, it doesn't matter. It's just a pride thing.
2. yeah concrete would. Plus thinking about the environment, there will be no space eventually. which sucks. I'd do cremation.
3. They are required by law in some states (TN for certain). It's a protective measure for your loved one so that they don't end up like these people: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/07/il_cemeteries.html Plus concrete wouldn't be very practical if by chance they had to exhume the body for some reason or the cemetery flooded and graves had to be relocated.
4. no one twisted you arm to buy them.
5. Burial vaults have nothing to do with the funeral home, the vault is required by the cemetery, NOT the funeral home. Almost every cemetery today requires the use of a vault. It is meant to keep the grave from sinking in, protecting the casket is second to maintaining the burial grounds. If no vault were used, the weight from the dirt when it is filled back in would cause the casket to crush and collapse eventually if not immediately. Therefore, cemeteries require a vault to be used to prevent this from happening.