R. Brian Burkhardt has refuted  Chris Butler of Butler Funeral Homes in Springfield, IL on the Illinois Funeral Directors Association Ponzi Scheme. Butler has had

Illinois Funeral Directors Association had a ponzi scheme

five days to respond to Burkhardt’s Comments but Chris Butler has refused. Butler used several  Old “National Prearranged Services” Tricks to defend the troubled IFDA Preneed Trust MADOFF like Scheme.

1. He attacked the Newspaper for their reporting.

2.He accused the Newspaper for causing A PANIC among IFDA preneed trust policy holders. The actions of the IFDA caused the Panic.

3. He implied that the regulators in the State comptroller’s office were at fault not the IFDA. “The “IFDA  Lost 59 Million in their Ponzi Scheme”

4. He implied that the State Journal Register and the Comptroller’s office were over reaching. Bruce Rushton, the Reporter, and Dan Hynes, the Illinois Comptroller, were just doing their jobs.

Between the IFDA and National Prearranged Services the funeral industry lost over 1 billion dollars on these scams according to Newsweek.

Here are R. Rrian Burkhardts comments that Butler has refused to respond to. I am making them publically available so that folks will avoid preneed and IFDA

The IFDA preneed trust problem began at the time it received it's license to manage the trust from Illinois Senator Roland Burris

Funeral homes.

“Chris Butler.

I am far from anonymous My name is R.Brian Burkhardt and I am known on the internet as your funeral guy.

First from one of my blogs:

‘Illinois seems to be in a panic over preneed funeral money’. Thank the antics of the Illinois Funeral Directors Association and their $59 million Madoff fund. This is a classic case of attacking the messenger. There is confused and frightened public. said IFDA insider Chris Butler. The IFDA Preneed scam is what confused and frightened the public not a State Register Editorial and a series of articles as he claims.-your funeral guy’

Chris:Quote;’I have served one Board term with IFDA. I served on Committees for the sole purpose of updating education curriculum for Funeral Directors/Embalmers in the State of Illinois. This Committee work ceased in 2006 because all IFDA attention and resources were directed to the Trust matter. I was not serving on the Board at this time.’

RBRIAN: The IFDA PRENEED TRUST ALLEGED PONZI Scheme went on in 1990’s through today. Chris, you were there when it was happening.

Funeral Homes across the USA sometimes employ preneed tricks to take your money

If you served on the board in 2006, how could not be been aware of the what was going on with the trust?if you had IFDA trust policies at your funeral homes how could you not know? IT is called due diligence for yourself, YOUR CUSTOMERS and citizens in the State.

Chris: Quote ‘I have served one Board term with IFDA.’
RBRIAN : Chris Here you said ‘I AM AN IFDA INSIDER.’

Chris:Quote ‘Funeral Directors did not mismanage the money in the Trust’
RBRIAN: I agee with you Chris funeral directors in general did not mismanage the Trust. IFDA LEADERS AND BOARD MEMBERS who are Funeral Directors mismanaged and misappropriated the trust.

Chris Quote:There are funds which exist which cannot be counted as an asset, although they are a part of the trust.
RBRIAN: I agree with you Chris the funds do exist and they are key guy insurance policies, they are the ponzi part of the scheme and your key guys will not die in time to cover the fund.

Chris: Quote ‘To say that funeral actively directors managed the trust is not true’
RBRIAN: I agree with you Chris, Funeral Directors in general did not manage the trust. Funeral Directors at the IFDA Fraudulently managed the trust as alleged in three lawsuits.

Chris: ‘Quote’:Relative to this question- ‘ Who will notify IFDA non-guaranteed policy holders of their losses?’, let me say this. If a contract is honored in full, where does the loss exist? Only the funeral home would suffer any consequences under this scenario, so I suggest that the Funeral Home will notify itself that because it honored its contract, it has experienced a financial ‘loss’.

R.Brian: Chris you cannot guarantee that all contracts will be honored in full. The honor system does not work, that is the source of the IFDA preneed Trusy alleged ponzi sceme.

Chris Quote::Let me address this point made by the anonymous writer: ‘In spite of all that is said above-’ preneed prepayment comes down to the funeral director gets the

Illinois Funeral Homes participated in Association Ponzi Scheme

interest on your money. This other point of view is left out of THIS article’;

Chris:Quote ‘My reply is this: ……. In the time period between the original deposit and the death, the funeral home does not have use of the funds. The funds stay within the funding vehicle.’

RBRIAN: AND after death ANY FUNDS LEFT OVER ABOVE and BEYOND THE DEATH BENEFITS THE FUNERAL HOME GETS. hey why did you leave that out?

RBRIAN: Any insurance professional or funeral director knows that there are PAYOUTs to the funeral home on preneed policies.(but not on the funding Vehicle)

Specifically IFDA Preneed trust policies, .PAYOUTS from interest on the funds or investment. In the case of Lyn Cagner mentioned in both the SJR and the Chicago Tribune, she has lost her interest on her family’s money in her Non Guarranteed Policy because of the IFDA’s CEASE AND DESIST ORDER. Did you read the article?

BE Honest You or your Funeral Homes have received payouts on preneed trust policies through interest or commissions. You have received commissions or payouts from the funding vehicle as you call it..

Chris Quote: ‘These funds grow in value’
RBRIAN: If there are funds growing in value let me know. I will call up Warren Buffet and let him know.

And to ‘Chance’: in the article Chris addresses the fact that if the funeral home closes, the fund is available at another funeral home. But what if the fund is bad like the

Folks in Illinois have been hurt by the Funeral Directors Ponzi Scheme

IFDA’s? Chris, Says Just as the IFDA says that funeral homes will do the right thing and cover all the policies. A voice guarantee from legislators funeral directors and regulators is not good enough for the average working stiff.

RBRIAN BURKHARDT”

Funeral Industry| Blog by R Brian Burkhardt- apology for the length of the post but the comments need to be available to working stiffs as a warning on preneed. and IFDA.

Source: Chris Butler in SJR, Burkhardt comments in Springfield, IL State Journal Register.
r brian burkhardt

Your Funeral Guy R.Brian Burkhardt is a funeral director in Illinois and Virginia. He author of the acclaimed funeral consumer guide on funeral cost Rest in Peace  R. Brian Burkhardt is a Funeral Director in Illinois and Virginia. He is the author of Rest in peace insiders Tiops to the Low Cost less Stress Funeral.

Technorati Tags: blog, Butler Funeral Homes, Chris Butler, comptroller, Dan Hynes, funeral industry, ifda, Illinois funeral directors association, national prearranged services, newsweek, preneed

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