Why funeral poverty has soared in Britain

Last week police removed 34 bodies and ashes from the Legacy Independent Funeral Directors in Hull as bereaved families realised they may have “kissed empty coffins” and made keepsakes with the ashes of people other than their loved-ones. The bewilderment of the living was bad enough, but the cruellest part of the scandal is that the company was selling itself as “fighting funeral poverty”. A recent survey by ABC Finance reported 38 per cent of Britons struggle to cover funeral expenses. Many of those affected by the Legacy affair had taken advantage of the firm’s low-cost funerals. These include a service in the company’s shop followed by an unattended cremation outside the Hull area. Legacy is understood to have used a crematorium in Leeds. If bereaved relatives pick up ashes directly from a crematorium, they are issued with a legal cremation certificate. Funeral directors are under no obligation to issue the certificate. Legacy’s £970 Maple service compares favourably with the average price of a basic funeral – £4,141, according to SunLife’s annual Cost of Dying 2024 report. That’s up 4.7 per cent on last year and has soared 126 per cent over the last 20 years, more than inflation or house prices.