Pre-Planning
Give yourself time to decide clearly.
Record preferences, organize personal information and understand current options without the urgency of an immediate need.
Why families plan
A practical act of preparation.
Pre-planning can reduce uncertainty for the people who may one day carry out your wishes. It lets you consider funeral, burial or cremation choices when you have time to compare information and ask questions.
Planning does not need to be fear-based or rushed. It can simply create a clear record and an informed starting point.
- Record the choices that matter most to you
- Give family a useful starting point
- Compare service and merchandise options
- Review current pricing without immediate pressure
- Identify missing documents or cemetery information
- Share the plan with the people you choose
Your preferences
What a planning record can include.
Service structure
Record whether you prefer visitation, a funeral, memorial, celebration of life, private gathering or another structure.
Burial or cremation
Note the intended form of disposition and any cemetery, niche, scattering or urn considerations already known.
Ceremony details
Music, readings, faith traditions, speakers, photographs and meaningful objects can all be recorded without finalizing every detail.
People to involve
List family, clergy, celebrants, pallbearers, speakers and other contacts who should be consulted.
Merchandise preferences
Record general casket, urn, keepsake or stationery preferences and confirm current availability when the plan is used.
Reception and hospitality
Note whether a reception, food, accessibility accommodation or travel consideration may be important.
Information to organize
Prepare the facts your family may need.
Keep records in a secure place and tell a trusted person where to find them. Do not place sensitive account numbers or health records in the website form.
- Full legal name and preferred name
- Date and place of birth
- Parents’ names, including birth surnames where applicable
- Marriage or relationship information
- Education, occupation, military or community history
- Names and spellings for immediate family
- Executor or estate-trustee contact information
- Cemetery, interment-right or existing pre-arrangement records
- People to notify and obituary notes
Pre-arranging and payment
Planning and prepaying are separate decisions.
You can record arrangements without prepaying. If you later consider a funded plan, ask for the written contract, the services and supplies included, payment method, cancellation rights and an explanation of how the funds are protected.
The Bereavement Authority of Ontario publishes current consumer information about pre-planning and prepayment. Wagg will explain the actual program it offers before you sign anything.
- Pre-planning can begin without payment
- Funding terms belong in a written contract
- Ask what is guaranteed and what may change
- Review cancellation and transfer terms
- Keep copies with other important records
- Tell family or the estate trustee that a plan exists
How to begin
Start with the amount of planning that feels useful.
Review the service pages and price list.
Note questions about funeral, burial, cremation, memorialization and merchandise rather than trying to settle everything alone.
Complete the online planning form or call.
Share the information you are comfortable recording and choose how you would like Wagg to follow up.
Meet with a funeral director.
Clarify options, current pricing, documents and any separate cemetery or third-party arrangements.
Keep and share the record.
Store copies safely, tell the appropriate people and review the plan when circumstances or preferences change.
Common questions
Pre-planning, without pressure.
No. It can begin by recording the information and preferences you already know, then reviewing other choices over time.
Yes. Wagg’s published General Price List is available online to view or download. Ask a funeral director to confirm which items apply and whether a newer document has been published.
Yes. Some people plan privately first; others include family members, friends or the person who may later have legal authority to make arrangements.
No. It gathers planning information and preferences for follow-up. A funeral director will explain any separate agreement or funding terms before you decide.
No. Ontario’s Bereavement Authority explains that a person may pre-arrange without prepaying. If funding is considered, review the written contract, cancellation terms and consumer protections before deciding.
Preferences and circumstances can change. Review the record periodically and discuss changes with the funeral home and the people expected to carry out the plan.
Available by phone 24/7
Ask a question before you decide.
For immediate assistance, call Wagg Funeral Home. For planning or general questions, send a non-urgent message.