Cost of death in a village in Buriram

[Bangkok Barry]

15 hours ago, CharlieKo said:

Temple cost for the cremation can be anything from 60-100,000 baht depending on the temple.

My wife says you're quoting a city price. The countryside rate is much lower. That is because in the city the body is usually kept in the temple for a few days whereas in the countryside the coffin is kept in the home. Also, the temple might provide food and drink for the mourners, whereas in the countryside it is the family of the deceased who provide that.

 

When my father-in-law died I dreaded how much it was going to cost me. But there is a kind of insurance scheme in the village which people contribute to, and as stated above those who attend make a donation too. We actually ended up making a profit!

[TimeMachine]

A cremation in Australia costs about 2-3k. That would be minimum without any funeral procession. So Thai fees seem a tiny bit high to handle such an affair. 

Im wondering what happens when there is nobody claiming the body or funds are simply not available.

 

Do the government handle the situation?  Or body left to rot in a paddock somewhere?

[connda]

2 hours ago, prakhonchai nick said:

Families generally splash out more for a farang funeral than for a Thai funeral, despite, in most cases, the deceased farang wanting nothing more that a simple cremation.

 

What I have always failed to understand is why is there the necessity to feed the local villagers morning noon and night for the days leading up to the funeral and the day after. Yes, maybe they drop 100bt in an envelope, but in most cases it does not cover the cost of the unnecessary food, which the majority collect in bags and take away 3 times a day.

 

If only I could find a way to prevent all this nonsense when my time comes.

Just say no!  Like I stated above. 
If CM University doesn't take our bodies, then we'll be held in state for a day at the house - immediate family only - pay for monks to chant, get placed in one of the wat's cheap 1000 THB coffins, and then off to the crematorium for cremation.  Ashes and ground bone will be tossed into the nearby river and we're done with it.

It's only a village affair if you make it a village affair. 
 

[KannikaP]

21 hours ago, Sandboxer said:

And before the jokers here comment the obvious - no, I'm not contributing any money for this. I already bought both my gf's husband AND boyfriend a house each, so I think I'm off the hook for a while.

Are you saying that your Thai GF also has a husband AND a boyfriend?

[The Fugitive]

6 hours ago, TimeMachine said:

A cremation in Australia costs about 2-3k. That would be minimum without any funeral procession. So Thai fees seem a tiny bit high to handle such an affair. 

Im wondering what happens when there is nobody claiming the body or funds are simply not available.

 

Do the government handle the situation?  Or body left to rot in a paddock somewhere?

Same as at home. Paupers funeral paid out of public funds. I've read somewhere that a hospital mortuary gets cleared out after 30 days if bodies remain unclaimed. 

[connda]

3 minutes ago, The Fugitive said:

Same as at home. Paupers funeral paid out of public funds. I've read somewhere that a hospital mortuary gets cleared out after 30 days if bodies remain unclaimed. 

I'll have to check how much it cost to fricassée a farang over a gas grill here in the village.  I'll ask my wife tonight. 
My guess is cheap, sure not 2-3K AUD.  Probably enough to cover the cost of the natural gas and a days wage for those who help, like about 5 to 7 people at 600 THB a day.
The monks chant for what we give them, but being Buddhist, we tend to be generous to the temple monks.

[connda]

10 minutes ago, The Fugitive said:

Same as at home. Paupers funeral paid out of public funds. I've read somewhere that a hospital mortuary gets cleared out after 30 days if bodies remain unclaimed. 

If you donate your body for the med school, they pay for a nice send off after they are done slicing and dicing. 

[youreavinalaff]

6 hours ago, connda said:

Just say no!  Like I stated above. 
If CM University doesn't take our bodies, then we'll be held in state for a day at the house - immediate family only - pay for monks to chant, get placed in one of the wat's cheap 1000 THB coffins, and then off to the crematorium for cremation.  Ashes and ground bone will be tossed into the nearby river and we're done with it.

It's only a village affair if you make it a village affair. 
 

If it's your funeral, you can make it anything. You're dead.

[The Fugitive]

30 minutes ago, connda said:

If you donate your body for the med school, they pay for a nice send off after they are done slicing and dicing.

Good idea! The other day I was looking into organ donation. Signed up in UK with no problem. However, Thailand has a cut-off age of 65. 

[KannikaP]

14 hours ago, The Fugitive said:

My Mrs had three (now down to two) life insurance policies with; www.ThaiLife.com Policies taken out with a local insurance agent who also collects the monthly premiums.

My Mrs (I) has been paying Bht 1000 per month for about 8 years towards one of her sister's funerals. That's 96000 BAHT. She will get Bht 60000 when sister dies. If she stops paying.....gets NOWT! 

[Hummin]

6 minutes ago, KannikaP said:

My Mrs (I) has been paying Bht 1000 per month for about 8 years towards one of her sister's funerals. That's 96000 BAHT. She will get Bht 60000 when sister dies. If she stops paying.....gets NOWT! 

I asked my wife about the same, but thats the village way to do things here. Cant fix ,,,,,,,  But 1000 a month? 600 here 

[Ralf001]

1 hour ago, KannikaP said:

Are you saying that your Thai GF also has a husband AND a boyfriend?

I read his post as saying he has a Thai GF AND a Thai BF.

[The Fugitive]

9 minutes ago, KannikaP said:

My Mrs (I) has been paying Bht 1000 per month for about 8 years towards one of her sister's funerals. That's 96000 BAHT. She will get Bht 60000 when sister dies. If she stops paying.....gets NOWT!

Unbelievable! Both how a plan like that operates and why people take them out? My Mrs was worried because several of her friends have been left in debt when their falang husbands died from alcoholic poisoning. They had spent all their savings and ended up living (or rather boozing) from day to day on their pensions. I worked out that according to the policy she has taken out on me, if I die in year 0 or 1 it's a total loss. Between year's 2 and 9 she would make a profit. Between 10 and 19 it would be a loss. The plan ends (matures?) at year 20. However, the refunded premiums plus bonus would be a loss.

[youreavinalaff]

I have a piece of string here. I'll ask my wife how long it is.

 

I'd suggest the OP does the same with regards to the projected funeral costs. There's no common ground and many variables to consider.

[ChipButty]

7 hours ago, TimeMachine said:

A cremation in Australia costs about 2-3k. That would be minimum without any funeral procession. So Thai fees seem a tiny bit high to handle such an affair. 

Im wondering what happens when there is nobody claiming the body or funds are simply not available.

 

Do the government handle the situation?  Or body left to rot in a paddock somewhere?

One hospital I know here in Phuket has a mortuary I'm not sure after how many days but they do dispose of the body if not claimed, 

[The Fugitive]

22 minutes ago, Hummin said:

I asked my wife about the same, but thats the village way to do things here. Cant fix ,,,,,,,  But 1000 a month? 600 here 

I'm definitely way over the top here at 2,800 baht per month. However, with pay-out of 300,000 upon death maybe it isn't so bad?

[ChipButty]

I dont want no funeral what a waste of money you can all plant a tree for me, 

[Hummin]

2 minutes ago, The Fugitive said:

I'm definitely way over the top here at 2,800 baht per month. However, with pay-out of 300,000 upon death maybe it isn't so bad?

All depending of how many years you paying in for? 

[Hummin]

2 minutes ago, ChipButty said:

I dont want no funeral what a waste of money you can all plant a tree for me, 

The funeral is not for you, but if you live alone die alone, then who cares? 

[youreavinalaff]

41 minutes ago, KannikaP said:

My Mrs (I) has been paying Bht 1000 per month for about 8 years towards one of her sister's funerals. That's 96000 BAHT. She will get Bht 60000 when sister dies. If she stops paying.....gets NOWT! 

There are different types of policy. 

 

I have a life assurance policy, not life insurance.

 

It's about 1500 baht a month. My wife gets about one hundred thousand if I die. At 60 years old I can ask for closure and get some of the investment back.

 

However, during the 20 years policy and upto 90 years old, if I choose not to close the account at 60, I get extensive medical cover. That includes a 1000 baht a day payment for lose of earnings if I stay in hospital.

[The Fugitive]

2 minutes ago, Hummin said:

All depending of how many years you paying in for? 

Exactly! If I died during year 3 it's maximum gain. If during year 19 it's maximum loss. Best to hold on in case of the latter until 20 and get premiums back plus bonus. You have to laugh! 

[The Fugitive]

7 minutes ago, youreavinalaff said:

There are different types of policy. 

 

I have a life assurance policy, not life insurance.

 

It's about 1500 baht a month. My wife gets about one hundred thousand if I die. At 60 years old I can ask for closure and get some of the investment back.

 

However, during the 20 years policy and upto 90 years old, if I choose not to close the account at 60, I get extensive medical cover. That includes a 1000 baht a day payment for lose of earnings if I stay in hospital.

Thanks for your information. The extensive medical cover plus 1,000 per day whilst a hospital in-patient is an extremely attractive feature!

[NanLaew]

On 7/22/2023 at 5:38 PM, Sandboxer said:

Thank you gentlemen, that gives me a much better idea of what they're dealing with. The cremation will be on the 3rd day.

 

I haven't been hit up by gf for any contribution but feel somewhat compelled to pitch in even though they don't really need my money (but it's not like they're loaded so I think any extra help is appreciated?). The guy was the first male in the family to really warm up to me once he realized I'm not a douche (well....y'all can debate that later) and I truly liked him.

If he was a conscientious soul, he may have had life insurance? I know my wife, yai and the itinerant squatters do. That's what it's for.

Not touching my wallet I mean.

[Reginald Prewster]

The cost of death in countryside is around 400k when the Family (or in our case long year Friends) run the show.

 

They and the Village will prepare everything from Decorations to Food, Monks to coffin and so on.

 

We have put 500k aside for each, my wife and myself and about 300K for tickets so my kids and grandkids can fly over. 

For each of our friends on our farm (6) we have also put 400k in this account, started 2007 and never touched hence it has collected a decent bonus with the interest rates.. 

 

 

[CecilM]

Based on my experience, for a normal funeral they should break even (cost VS monetary gifts) or even have something left over. The more people come, the cost of food per person goes down while the total of monetary gifts goes up.

Was involved in the planning of a few funerals and surprised how cheap the food was. 

[Stevemercer]

The funeral will cost 100,000 - 200,000 Baht depending upon how many relatives and friends etc, the deceased has.

 

As others have said, the organisers will get 50 - 100% back from donations. If you want to make a contribution, it would be much appreciated. You could offer something like 15,000 Baht up-front, or make a very generous envelope donation of 4,000 Baht at the cremation (give to the widow after the cremation ceremony and when you are walking away from the coffin after the flower giving - the widow and her close family will be waiting nearby discretely for farewells and these more personal envelopes).

[Skeptic7]

B50,000-100,000 and up up up. They love to waste money on the dead and the superstitions of their culture. 

[Hummin]

28 minutes ago, Reginald Prewster said:

The cost of death in countryside is around 400k when the Family (or in our case long year Friends) run the show.

 

They and the Village will prepare everything from Decorations to Food, Monks to coffin and so on.

 

We have put 500k aside for each, my wife and myself and about 300K for tickets so my kids and grandkids can fly over. 

For each of our friends on our farm (6) we have also put 400k in this account, started 2007 and never touched hence it has collected a decent bonus with the interest rates.. 

 

 

At least someone is taking it serious and themselves. How much spend the villagers around your place in average? 50k to 100k? 

 

 

[kennw]

On 7/22/2023 at 4:36 PM, Sandboxer said:

GFs brother-in-law dropped dead last night. Poor guy was only 35. Super nice the few times I met him, hard working, 2 kids+wife. Family is a typical farming family i.e. they ow a bit of land, a good herd of buffalo, a few rai of rubber trees. So they do ok and live a relatively decent standard of life. 

 

Question - how much ROUGHLY will this whole death process cost? The ceremonial stuff, feeding the villagers (probably about 300 of them) who come to pay respects, temple costs + cremation.

 

Any guesses appreciated.

 

And before the jokers here comment the obvious - no, I'm not contributing any money for this. I already bought both my gf's husband AND boyfriend a house each, so I think I'm off the hook for a while.

 

 

Dont apply western logic, use Thai thinking, you bought two houses, and still there ? obviously the well is not dry yet.

[stereolab]

21 hours ago, youreavinalaff said:

I have a piece of string here. I'll ask my wife how long it is.

 

I'd suggest the OP does the same with regards to the projected funeral costs. There's no common ground and many variables to consider.

One thing you must do, is place, say 2000 baht in a white envelope, and pass it to the deceaseds wife at an evening prayer session, making sure that people see the gesture.