Councils increase cremation costs despite the Covid crisis
Wells Funeral Services
The costs of laying your loved ones to rest have shot up during the coronavirus pandemic - despite providers offering 'pauper's funerals' in lockdown.
Although a limited amount of family and friends are being allowed to the ceremonies, two thirds of councils have raised their prices by up to 16%. The rise of Covid-19 has meant smaller numbers of mourners can now attend funerals in order to maintain social distancing. Some councils have reacted by slashing costs, while a quarter of them have simply frozen their prices.
One widower told the BBC a lockdown service for his wife was like a 'pauper's funeral'. Neville Wilson said that only five mourners could attend his wife Doreen's send-off after she died of lung cancer in March. He said the funeral procession was a hearse only, without any floral tributes, with her family having to take their own cars to attend the ceremony.
Coventry City Council, who ran the service, cut it from 45 minutes to 15 minutes but still charged the same price. Machine engineer Mr Wilson, 66, said: 'It felt unbelievably bad. 'It felt like a pauper's funeral. It couldn't get any worse if we'd tried.
'I then started some investigation myself as to which councils were and which councils weren't freezing costs and I thought if some councils are doing it, why aren't Coventry council doing it?'
Local authorities have defended price rises, pointing out they were agreed before the pandemic, which has also made putting them on more expensive. Andrew Walster, from Coventry City Council, said service times had to be cut to introduce deep cleaning between service. He said: 'Unfortunately, that didn't reduce our costs of providing that service to the public, in fact it increased it, by providing those additional facilities for bereaved families,' he said. 'We haven't passed on those additional costs.'
Down to Earth, a project of the charity Quaker Social Action who support people struggling with funeral costs across the UK, slammed the price hikes. Acting manager Lindesay Mace said: 'What we're seeing here are increases in cremation fees in the last year of as much as six, seven and even 10% in some places. Those kind of price rises are clearly beyond the means of the average person, especially when you bear in mind that incomes haven't risen by nearly as much.'
Chief executive officer of the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management, Julie Dunk, said councils had to invest in environmentally friendly equipment.
But widower Mr Wilson said prices were heaping more anguish onto struggling families. He added: 'My two sons are still extremely angry. And so are my wife's family. They're very upset that they couldn't attend. I really wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy,' he said. 'Horrendous is the word.'
Source: The Daily Mail