{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-36-36-6125","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 36, § 36-6125","heading":"Deposit and investment of funds – Transfer of funds -","body":"Types of contracts – Net value of contract – Interest - Withdrawal\n\nof funds – Disbursement statement – Bond – Administrative fee –\n\nAcceptance of funds – Violations.\n\nA. 1. The organization may retain from the first funds\n\ncollected, the first ten percent (10%) of the purchase price of all\n\ncontracts issued pursuant to paragraph 1 of subsection B of this\n\nsection. Thereafter, one hundred percent (100%) of all funds\n\ncollected pursuant to the provisions of contracts for prepaid\n\nfuneral benefits, except for outer enclosures as defined by the\n\nFuneral Services Licensing Act, shall be placed in investments\n\nauthorized by Article 16 of the Insurance Code, except to the extent\n\nthe Insurance Commissioner may determine that a particular asset may\n\nbe inappropriate for investment for prepaid funeral benefits.\n\n2. For outer enclosures at the option of the organization the\n\nfirst thirty-five percent (35%) of the retail price of the outer\n\nenclosures collected may be retained by the organization. The\n\nremaining sixty-five percent (65%) of the retail price collected for\n\nthe outer enclosures shall be invested as otherwise provided by this\n\nsubsection pursuant to the provisions of contracts for prepaid\n\nfuneral benefits.\n\n3. The funds required to be deposited pursuant to paragraphs 1\n\nand 2 of this subsection shall be deposited within ten (10) days\n\nafter the collection of the funds and shall be held in a trust fund\n\nin this state for the use, benefit, and protection of purchasers of\n\ncontracts for prepaid funeral benefits. Nothing contained within\n\nthis section shall be construed to prohibit an organization\n\nauthorized to accept prepaid funds from transferring the funds held\n\nin trust from one trust depository to another if notice of the\n\ntransfer is given to the Insurance Commissioner within ten (10) days\n\nbefore the transfer and the organization transferring the funds\n\nremains the designated trustor. This subsection shall not affect\n\nfunds invested prior to November 1, 1988.\n\nB. An organization authorized to accept prepaid funds shall be\n\nauthorized to provide purchasers with a choice of either of the\n\nfollowing types of contracts:\n\n1. A contract for Specific and Described Funeral Merchandise\n\nand Service at a Guaranteed Price. The provisions of this type of\n\ncontract shall provide that interest paid by the organization upon\n\nmonies deposited in trust shall be added to the principal and that\n\nprincipal and interest shall become available for disbursement to\n\nthe organization upon the death of the beneficiary and if withdrawal\n\nof monies occurs prior to death, the net value, plus the amount\n\nwithheld pursuant to paragraph 1 of subsection A of this section,\n\nshall be paid to the purchaser. Net value of the contract for\n\npurposes of this section shall be determined by adding the amount of\n\nall principal paid in pursuant to the provisions of the contract\n\nplus all interest payable pursuant to subsection D of this section\n\nless taxes and administrative fees;\n\n2. A contract establishing a fund for prepaid funeral benefits.\n\nThe provisions of this type of contract shall require an initial\n\nminimum deposit of Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00) and shall grant the\n\npurchaser the right to add to the fund at the discretion of the\n\npurchaser. The provisions of this contract shall provide that the\n\nfunds accumulated shall apply to the cost of the funeral services\n\nand merchandise selected and that any funds remaining unused shall\n\nbe refunded to the purchaser or to the personal representative or\n\ndesignated beneficiary of the purchaser and if withdrawal of monies\n\noccurs prior to death, the organization may retain from the\n\ninterest, all interest incurred in excess of the minimum amount\n\npayable pursuant to subsection D of this section less taxes and\n\nadministrative fees. This type of contract shall also bear upon it\n\nthe language: \"Exact Funeral Merchandise and Services to be Selected\nor\n\ndesignated beneficiary of the purchaser and if withdrawal of monies\n\noccurs prior to death, the organization may retain from the\n\ninterest, all interest incurred in excess of the minimum amount\n\npayable pursuant to subsection D of this section less taxes and\n\nadministrative fees. This type of contract shall also bear upon it\n\nthe language: \"Exact Funeral Merchandise and Services to be Selected\n\nat Time of Death\";\n\n3. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, at no time\n\nshall the purchaser of a contract for Specific and Described Funeral\n\nMerchandise and Service at a Guaranteed Price receive upon any\n\nwithdrawal or transfer a sum less than the original principal\n\ncollected; or\n\n4. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, at no time\n\nshall the purchaser of a contract for Exact Funeral Merchandise and\n\nServices to be Selected at Time of Death receive upon any full\n\nwithdrawal or transfer prior to death a sum less than the original\n\nprincipal collected available at death, with the exception of those\n\naccounts which bear principal reduced by previously made cash\n\nwithdrawals.\n\nC. If an organization other than the organization with which\n\nthe purchaser contracted provides funeral merchandise and services\n\nupon the death of the beneficiary of the contract, the organization\n\nwith whom the purchaser contracted shall forward, upon receipt of\n\nrequest in writing from the purchaser or the personal representative\n\nof the purchaser, the net value of the contract plus the amount\n\nwithheld pursuant to paragraph 1 of subsection A of this section to\n\nthe organization which provided the merchandise and services or to\n\nthe purchaser or the personal representative of the purchaser.\n\nD. Funds deposited in trust pursuant to the provisions of\n\neither type of contract authorized by the provisions of this section\n\nshall earn for the account of the purchaser a rate of interest which\n\nis not less than the minimum rate of interest offered by the\n\nqualified investments specified in subsection A of this section to\n\nthe savings customers of the qualified investments having interest-\n\nbearing accounts. The organization, in a nondiscriminatory manner,\n\nmay pay or accrue interest for the accounts of purchasers at any\n\nrate greater than the minimum rate that the organization desires;\n\nprovided, however, that the organization may retain from the\n\ninterest all interest incurred in excess of the minimum amount\n\npayable pursuant to this subsection.\n\nE. A purchaser of either of the types of contracts authorized\n\nby the provisions of this section may withdraw the net value of the\n\ncontract by signing a statement requesting the withdrawal. The\n\norganization shall retain in its files a copy of the statement\n\nrequesting the withdrawal. Withdrawal of funds deposited pursuant\n\nto the provisions of a contract authorized by the provisions of\n\nparagraph 1 of subsection B of this section shall void the\n\nobligation of the contracting organization to provide funeral\n\nmerchandise and services at a guaranteed price. Withdrawal forms\n\nshall be retained on file for at least six (6) years by the\n\norganization.\n\nF. Following the death of a beneficiary for whom a contract has\n\nbeen purchased, the organization shall prepare a statement,\n\nacknowledged by the purchaser if the purchaser is not the\n\nbeneficiary, or by the personal representative of the purchaser if\n\nthe purchaser is the beneficiary, setting forth the use of the funds\n\ndeposited and the party to whom any unused funds were disbursed. A\n\ncopy of this statement shall remain in the files of the organization\n\nfor at least six (6) years and a copy shall be delivered to the\n\ntrust depository and the purchaser.\n\nG. After thirty (30) days, a contract of either type authorized\n\nby the provisions of this section may become irrevocable and not\n\nsubject to withdrawal prior to the death of the beneficiary if the\nnused funds were disbursed. A\n\ncopy of this statement shall remain in the files of the organization\n\nfor at least six (6) years and a copy shall be delivered to the\n\ntrust depository and the purchaser.\n\nG. After thirty (30) days, a contract of either type authorized\n\nby the provisions of this section may become irrevocable and not\n\nsubject to withdrawal prior to the death of the beneficiary if the\n\npurchaser signs an election making the contract irrevocable. This\n\nelection shall not become effective until thirty (30) days after\n\nsigning the original contract.\n\nH. In no event shall more funds be withdrawn or paid pursuant\n\nto the provisions of one contract than were deposited with the\n\norganization and which were accumulated as interest. All funds\n\ndeposited pursuant to the provisions of a contract authorized by the\n\nprovisions of this section and deposited pursuant to the terms of\n\nthis section and the interest earned on the funds shall be exempt\n\nfrom attachment, garnishment, execution, and the claims of\n\ncreditors, receivers, or trustees in bankruptcy, until the time the\n\nfunds have been withdrawn from the trust account and paid to the\n\norganization or refunded to the purchaser.\n\nI. Each organization subject to the provisions of this section\n\nshall furnish a bond in the form of a cash bond, letter of credit,\n\nor fidelity bond, to be approved by the Insurance Commissioner, in\n\nthe amount of Three Hundred Thousand Dollars ($300,000.00) or\n\nfifteen percent (15%) of all funds collected for prepaid funeral\n\nbenefits, whichever is less.\n\nJ. Organizations contracting with purchasers for prepaid\n\nfuneral benefits pursuant to paragraphs 1 and 2 of subsection B of\n\nthis section shall be entitled to deduct from the principal and\n\ninterest allocable to the contracts an administrative fee which\n\nshall not exceed the product of .001146 times the total contract\n\nfund including accrued interest per month or any major portion\n\nthereof.\n\nK. No organization holding a permit issued pursuant to the\n\nprovisions of Sections 6121 and 6124 of this title shall accept any\n\nfunds except pursuant to the provisions of a contract for prepaid\n\nfuneral or burial benefits authorized by the provisions of Sections\n\n6121 through 6136.18 of this title, and no organization shall accept\n\nfunds from a purchaser in excess of the contracted price of prepaid\n\nfuneral or burial benefits purchased.\n\nL. Any organization which knowingly commits any of the acts set\n\nforth in the first sentence of Section 6121 of this title without\n\nfirst having obtained a permit to engage in the stated activity from\n\nthe Insurance Commissioner, or any organization which commits the\n\nacts while knowingly operating with an invalid or expired permit,\n\nupon conviction, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. Each separate\n\nact performed without a valid permit shall be deemed a separate\n\noffense. The punishment upon conviction for the offense shall be a\n\nfine not to exceed One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) or imprisonment\n\nin the county jail for not less than sixty (60) days nor more than\n\none (1) year, or both such fine and imprisonment.","path":["OK Code","Title 36"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os36.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"fde1d8dd7a326b2bdd1cc8e17c3a6df1e75384932fd3fae742f6e970f7561697","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-36-36-6124.2","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-36-36-6125.1"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}