How many people are affected by Funerals each year?
Last year there were 583,614 deaths in the UK. It is conservatively estimated that each of the funerals involved will have greatly impacted upon the lives of at least five close family members and friends, meaning that every year nearly three million people will be adversely affected by funerals in the UK alone.
Anyone can start up a funeral business
Despite there being more than 4,000 funeral directors in the UK, no training is necessary and there is no compulsory licensing or regulation of funeral businesses, allowing anyone to set themselves up as a funeral director. Not surprisingly this has resulted in some unscrupulous traders taking advantage of vulnerable bereaved families, as reported in a recent BBC Watchdog programme. Please click on the following link to see the edited highlights of this programme BBC’s Watchdog
Obtaining accurate price quotes can prove difficult
Trying to make cost comparisons and obtain accurate advice of all the costs involved with funeral directors services, can prove difficult for a number of reasons. Firstly, some funeral directors will only inform you of the cost of their professional services fee for making all the arrangements. This is often done in a manner that is designed to give the impression that this will cover all the typical costs incurred. However, it is important to note that what is actually covered by these fees can vary considerably, with many necessary charges deliberately ommitted in order to appear less expensive than some of their competitors.Consumer magazine Which? carried out it's own investigation in to the funeral industry and found dramatic differences in prices and quality of service. Considering that the vast majority of funeral directors are members of one of the two trade associations and should therefore be bound by their strict codes of practice, the following findings were of particular concern;
> 40% failed to mention any costs until the researcher asked at the end of the meeting. An OFT investigation in 2001 found that a staggering 28% of people had no idea of the costs involved until after the funeral.
> 48% gave insufficient advice about what was involved in arranging the funeral.
>64% failed to provide sufficient choices about the type of funeral the researchers wanted.
These findings prompted Helen Parker the Editor of Which? to say the following: "People who have just suffered a bereavement are particularly vulnerable, so it's vital that the funeral industry is properly regulated. Researchers found inexplicable price variations in funeral services and patchy service and advice . . . . this needs to be addressed. We want to see all funeral directors in the UK signed up to a standard code of practice. The code should be monitored and enforced by an independent body."
Funeral Costs are soaring
A recent report by GMTV stated that the cost of funerals has risen by 7.2% in the past year to £2,733 and it is estimated that if prices continue to rise at thier recent rate, a funeral will cost £3,580 by 2014 - 31% more than now.
Funeral Directors Blog- A fascinating insight!
Charles Cowling runs a fascinating and very revealing website called 'The Good Funeral Guide'. The most interesting part of which is the blog, containing numerous uncensored comments by funeral people who are concerned by some of the practices of other funeral companies. An absolute must visit for anyone wanting a more revealing insight into the relatively secret world of funerals. To learn more please visit; goodfuneralguide.com . Otherwise look out for his book entitled 'The Good Funeral Guide' which is due for release in March 2010.
Webcast Funerals
A number of crematoriums are now offering a webcast service allowing anyone unable to attend to watch it on the internet. Mourners are being charged £30 to enable them to watch the service over a secure website, with a DVD of the service also being made available.
Funerals without mourners on the increase
Radio 4 presenter John Waite recently reported that the number of lonely, council funded funerals for people who have died alone with no known next of kin or family, is on the increase. It is a situation which has arisen all over the UK and perhaps this is only logical with an ageing population and more people living alone.
Research by the Local Government Association revealed that the number of public health funerals rose nationally by more than 10% between 2006/07 and 2007/08. The survey by the LGA was a national snapshot based on information from 116 councils. It estimates that 4,900 funerals were carried out by local authorities across the country in 2007/08. Under section 46 of the Public Health Act 1984 councils are legally required to deal with all aspects of a welfare funeral. The council usually seeks to recover the costs of the funerals where possible, normally from the estate of the person who has died or by attempting to trace family members.
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