S.C. Code Ann. § 39-55-185 – Merchandise trust fund; records; interest; refunds; report of merchandise trust fund; examination by board; certain contracts void; schedule of charges; penalties

(A) Any person receiving funds from the sale of merchandise for use in a cemetery in connection with the burial or commemoration of a deceased human being when the use of the merchandise is not immediately requested or required shall deposit the funds in a merchandise trust fund administered by a trust institution.
The cemetery company shall maintain a record of each deposit into any such account and shall identify the name of the purchaser, the amount of the actual cost to the seller and the amount of money to be deposited, and a copy of the contract for the merchandise. Nothing contained herein prohibits the trustee from commingling the deposits in any trust fund of this kind for purposes of the management and investment of funds.
(B) When any memorial, mausoleum crypt, or other merchandise is sold in advance of need and not installed until a later date, one hundred percent of actual cost to the seller at time of deposit must be placed in a trust institution within sixty days after completion of the contract, with interest to accrue, and may not be withdrawn without the consent of the purchaser until the time of delivery or construction.
(C)
1. (1) The funds must be held in a merchandise trust fund both as to principal and income earned and must remain intact, except that the cost of the operation of the trust may be deducted from the income until delivery of the merchandise is made by the cemetery company or other entity. Upon delivery of the merchandise, the cemetery company or other entity shall certify these facts to the trustee. Upon this certification, the amount of money on deposit to the credit of that particular contract, including principal and income, must be paid to the cemetery company, or other entity. The trustee may rely upon all certifications of this kind and is not liable to anyone for this reliance.
2. (2) If for any reason a cemetery company or other entity which has entered into a contract for the sale of merchandise cannot or does not provide within a reasonable time the merchandise that has been fully paid for and called for by the contract after request in writing to do so, the purchaser or his heirs or assigns or duly authorized representative is entitled to receive the entire amount paid on the contract and any income earned by the merchandise trust fund for that particular item. Reasonable time excludes riots, strikes, acts of war, or any delays beyond the control of the cemetery company or other entity.
(D) At any time after payment in full and prior to delivery of merchandise, a purchaser may make written demand for a refund of the amount deposited in the merchandise trust fund to the credit of the purchaser, and, within thirty days of receipt of the written demand, the trustee shall refund to the purchaser the amount on deposit to his credit, less reasonable commission fees and administrative costs, together with all interest, dividends, increases, or accretions earned on the fund. Upon such refund, the cemetery company is relieved from any further liability for this merchandise.
(E) The trustee shall, annually and within ninety days after the end of the calendar year, file a financial report of the merchandise trust fund with the board on forms provided by the board, setting forth the principal, investments, and payments made and the income earned and disbursed. The board may require the trustee to make additional financial reports as the board considers advisable.
(F) The board may examine the business of any cemetery company or other entity writing contracts for the sale of the property or services described in this section. The written report of the examination must be filed in the office of the board. Any person or entity being examined shall produce the records of the company needed for the examination.
(G) Any provision of any contract for the sale of merchandise described in this section which provides that the purchaser or beneficiary may waive any of the provisions of this section is void.
(H) All cemetery owners shall have a full and complete schedule of all charges for services provided by the cemetery plainly printed or typewritten, posted conspicuously, and maintained, subject to inspection and copying at the usual place for transacting the regular business of the cemetery.
(I) Any cemetery company or other entity failing to make required contributions to a care and maintenance trust fund or to a merchandise trust fund is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be punished as provided in Section 39-55-265.
(J) If any report is not received within the time stipulated herein, the board may levy and collect a penalty of twenty-five dollars per day for each day of delinquency.