Monuta funeral insurance: everything you need to know
Monuta is one of the largest funeral insurers in the Netherlands and often arranges the funeral itself. But what exactly do you get for your premium, how does indexation work, and when is Monuta actually not a smart choice? We lay out the terms, costs and comparison with DELA.
Monuta is one of the major Dutch funeral insurers and, in many cases, also arranges the funeral itself, with over a hundred of its own funeral centres and several crematoria and cemeteries. That is not unique (DELA does the same), but it does make Monuta a different type of insurer than, for example, a.s.r., which only provides insurance without running its own funeral services.
The central question for you: is a Monuta combination policy really a smart choice, or are you better off with a pure capital insurance at another provider? In this article we look at the coverage, the current costs, and a few assumptions that are often made about Monuta which, in 2026, simply no longer hold up.
How does Monuta funeral insurance work?
Since April 2020, Monuta has only sold a combination insurance through its own website: a fixed service package plus a freely spendable amount. The service package covers the core (care, coffin, transport, a simple ceremony), and the freely spendable part can be used by your next of kin for personal wishes (extra guests, catering, flowers, a special location). Source: Monuta, policy conditions MV20-300.
A full capital insurance (without a service package) can no longer be taken out with Monuta online. Through an independent financial advisor it is sometimes still possible, but it is clearly no longer the main product. If you want a pure capital policy without a natura component, other providers usually make more sense.
Are you locked into the Monuta network?
This is where many articles about Monuta get sloppy. No, you are not legally locked in. But: if your next of kin choose a different, local funeral director, the service package lapses and only the freely spendable amount is paid out, on an invoice basis. Monuta confirms this literally on its own page about payouts. In euros: that quickly costs your next of kin around 2,500 to 3,000 euros in service value that you did pay for, but will not receive.
That is the key consideration: are you comfortable with a Monuta funeral (including their funeral director, their locations, their way of working)? Then the combination policy makes sense. If that is a point of doubt, you are essentially paying for services you are not going to use.
Tip: when taking out the policy, explicitly ask how much service value is "lost" if your next of kin choose a different funeral director. That figure rarely appears at the top of the quote.
What does a funeral actually cost (and what do you pay at Monuta)?
This is where things often go wrong in blogs. The figure of 7,500 euros that circulates as "the average funeral" comes from a Nibud report from 2017. That is nine years old. Since then, funeral costs have risen by around 40 percent according to CBS price indices, above the general inflation rate. The current average, according to NOS analysis based on CBS data, is around 10,000 euros. DELA itself uses 8,500 euros (cremation) up to 10,500 euros (burial); Monuta, on its own cost page, mentions a range of 7,000 to 11,500 euros.
So if you budget 7,500 euros as "enough coverage" in 2026, you run a real risk of underinsurance. Plan for at least 10,000 euros, and check annually whether your insured amount still fits.
At the lower end, Monuta does offer cheaper options: a budget arrangement from 4,860 euros and a cremation without a farewell ceremony (day, time and location determined by Monuta) from 2,250 euros. These are concrete amounts that come directly from Monuta, but they are stripped-down options, not "average funerals".
Premium: what does it depend on?
The monthly premium of a funeral insurance policy is determined by three factors:
- Your starting age: the younger you start, the lower the monthly premium, because you are expected to pay premium for longer.
- Your health: Monuta asks for a digital health declaration. With a heavy medical history, the premium is higher, or the insurance may be refused.
- The insured amount and the term: the higher the amount and the shorter the premium payment period, the higher the monthly amount. The current calculation interest rate also plays a role.
A concrete example: for an 18-year-old with an insured amount of 9,500 euros (2,500 euros in natura funeral services plus 7,000 euros in freely spendable capital), the premium at Monuta starts from 5.29 euros per month. A 35-year-old with the same coverage sits at around 9.03 euros according to Monuta. Premiums change, so always calculate your own situation using Monuta's calculator before signing up.
Tip: do not just look at the monthly premium, calculate your total contribution over the term. A lifelong 7 euros per month from age 18 is roughly 5,000 euros by age 80. A shorter payment period of 20 or 30 years sometimes results in a lower total contribution, depending on your age.
Indexation: does your coverage really grow along?
Monuta applies annual indexation and does not look at the general consumer price index (CPI), but at the specific price development of funeral services. Source: Monuta, indexation explanation. If the price of coffins or cremation rises, your insured amount rises with it. Your premium usually does too, because indexation is not free.
Three nuances hidden in the small print:
- The service part of the natura combination policy is "value-fixed": those services will be delivered regardless of market prices at the time of death. So there is no coverage risk there.
- Costs over which Monuta has no influence (burial rights, municipal levies) are not included in the indexation. Those are exactly the costs that rise sharply in some municipalities. This is the biggest coverage gap.
- Indexation on the freely spendable amount stops at age 85, because Monuta assumes funeral costs are lower at older ages.
So the idea that your policy "automatically grows fully with inflation" is not quite right. The basics are well arranged, but a gap can develop over time around burial rights and levies.
Tip: check once a year (for example in Mijn Monuta) whether your total insured amount still fits a realistic funeral budget in your municipality. Especially if you want a grave.
Managing, changing or surrendering your policy
Through Mijn Monuta you can view your policy sheet, update funeral wishes, submit address changes and see the current value of your insurance. That is handy, but you do not need to spend more than a quarter of an hour per year on it.
The three scenarios in which people want to change something about their policy:
- Change: you update address, beneficiary or funeral wishes via Mijn Monuta or customer service.
- Make premium-free: you stop paying, the accrued value remains, but the payout on death is lower than the target amount. This can be done via a form at customer service.
- Surrender: you have the current value of your policy paid into your account. This is almost always financially unfavourable, because Monuta deducts administrative costs and foregone returns. The surrender value is not a sum of all your paid premiums; a large part has already gone to risk coverage.
In practice, making a policy premium-free is almost always financially better than surrendering it. Surrendering is more of a last resort (in case of debt or a very different life stage), not a standard option.
Tip: calculate your surrender value via Mijn Monuta first before making a final decision. Compare that amount to the accrued value if you make it premium-free. The difference is often bigger than people expect.
Monuta or DELA: what are the differences?
Monuta and DELA are constantly compared with each other, and rightly so, because they are the two largest insurers that also arrange funerals themselves. But in the details they differ more than many articles suggest.
Feature | DELA | Monuta |
|---|---|---|
Organisational form | Non-profit cooperative (Coöperatie DELA U.A.), with a profit-sharing arrangement for members. | N.V. with Monuta Foundation as sole shareholder. Operates commercially, not absorbed by a.s.r. or any other party. |
Product range | DELA FuneralPlan in three variants: natura (services insurance), capital (cash insurance up to 25,000 euros) and lump sum. | Online only combination insurance (natura plus freely spendable amount). Pure capital policy only through an advisor. |
Children covered | Up to 60 days after birth automatically insured for basic services. After that, register them at a children's premium up to age 25. | Children up to 18 covered for free on the parent's policy, provided the policy has run for at least three months. |
Payout of remainder | With the capital policy, the insured amount is paid out freely to the beneficiary. | With the combination policy, any remainder stays with Monuta and is only paid out for funeral-related costs (grave monument, maintenance, ash destination) on an invoice basis. |
Own funeral services | Yes, own funeral directors, dozens of crematoria and cemeteries. | Yes, over a hundred funeral centres, own crematoria and cemeteries. |
The claim you read in many places ("DELA pays children nothing after 60 days" or "children are covered for free at DELA up to age 18") is wrong in both directions. The reality: after 60 days you have to actively register your children, against a low children's premium up to age 25. Source: DELA (dutch), a funeral insurance for children.
Tip: if profit-sharing and member benefits matter to you, DELA fits better. If you want your next of kin to be able to go to an external funeral director without halving their payout, do not choose a natura combination, but a capital policy (regardless of which insurer).
Conclusion: is Monuta the right choice for you?
Monuta is mainly a logical choice if you:
- value full unburdening of your next of kin;
- have no objection to Monuta's funeral directors and locations;
- have children under 18 whom you want to insure for free.
Monuta is a less suitable choice if you:
- want your next of kin to have full freedom in choosing a funeral director without losing out financially (a capital policy fits better then);
- see funeral insurance as a form of savings for later (it is not, a large part of your contribution is risk premium);
- live in a municipality with high burial rights and specifically want to be able to index on those.
Want to avoid paying more than necessary, or be sure that for your age and situation you are getting the best deal? Compare the current premiums and terms of all major funeral insurers here, or read more about Monuta on Eindstation.