Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, September 20, 2024
A. The use of
misleading or false advertising will constitute unprofessional conduct. The
following classes of advertising shall be deemed to be misleading:
1. advertising the price of caskets
exclusively, without stating that the price does not include other merchandise
and services, since the natural inference of the public is that the advertised
price of caskets includes the price of the service;
2. offering service at "cost" plus a
percentage, when the determination of the "cost" lies within the control of the
funeral director or embalmer and is not advertised and included within the
General Price List of the funeral home;
3. advertising or sale of certificates or
stock participation or any form of agreement which creates the impression with
the purchaser, when such is not a fact, that he becomes a part owner in the
advertiser's establishment and therefore entitled to special price privileges
for funeral services;
4.
advertising which impugns the honesty, trustworthiness, of the business or
professional standards of competitors, or which states that the prices charged
by competitors are considerably higher than those charged by the advertiser,
when such is not the fact;
5.
advertising which represents the advertiser to be the special defender of the
public interest or which makes it appear that the advertiser is subjected to
the combined attack of competitors. Such expressions as "independent," "not in
the trust," "not controlled by the combine," and other expressions having the
same import shall be deemed to be misleading unless it be shown by the
advertiser that there is a "trust," or a "combine" and that other funeral
directors constitute a monopoly for the purpose of maintaining prices or for
any other purpose; and the burden of proving such "trust," "combine," or
"monopoly" shall be upon the advertiser asserting the existence of the
same.
B. It is
prohibited for a licensed funeral establishment to authorize advertising by
others not licensed by this board, when such advertising offers services and/or
merchandise primarily performed and offered by a licensed funeral
director/embalmer and establishment, as defined in
R.S.
37:831-861. Such advertising shall be considered
as an inducement when used along with or in conjunction with plans,
merchandise, pre-need plans, or the like which are normally sold by others. The
above rule does not, however, prohibit a licensed funeral establishment from
advertising an affiliation with an insurance company.
AUTHORITY NOTE: Adopted
in accordance with
R.S.
37:840.
