Families could have a funeral for as little as £1,969.

Launching this petition In the run up to the Scottish Parliamentary elections was perhaps not the best time to launch a petition investigating the outrageous cost of funerals. Now the elections are over I hope many more people will support this petition to prevent families running up massive debts for a dignified funeral for their loved ones. The Scottish and Uk governments have been looking at this issue, but as always the approach is one of limiting damage, meeting with the interested parties, including the funeral industry to seek compromises. The politicians are very unlikely to be able to reduce the current cost of funerals, unless they are convinced there is massive public support for it. The funeral industry, is a closed shop, almost a monopoly, it has for years increased the cost of funerals well over the cost of inflation e.g. 3.9% in 2015 alone. That industry is conning the public into thinking that having a funeral plan is the answer. The brochures for such plans estimate funerals will increase from £3,600 today to over £11,000 by 2031. Just imagine if two or more of your relatives died at the same time, or even in the same year, how would the average income family find £22,000 for these funerals. Offering a funeral plan to pay for your £3,600 funeral may sound a great bargain, especially if it only actually costs the industry less than half of that. However since very few people have funeral plans, those that do buy them, are giving this service industry the ideal excuse to increase prices as they wish, in the knowledge that the millions of pounds held in that fund, will cover all eventualities for decades to come, and those not having a plan will just pay up. The industry knows that bereaved families will just cough up, in their desperation to do the right thing. What is the real cost of a simple Funeral? Currently, a cardboard coffin costs £119 and a wooden coffin £600, undertakers fees, to handle the body, provide a hearse and organise the funeral is around £1,000. Extra limousines cost about £250. Cremation costs of £600 are common and burials can vary from £1,200 to nearly £3,000 to open an existing grave and very much more for a new grave. Legally anyone can lead and organise a funeral, so fees for a priest or minister or Humanist Celebrant of around £150 need not be incurred. The cost of flowers and a family gathering after a funeral are never included in funeral plans but could add £500-£1000. Using these figures a DIY funeral could be organised by any family for as little as £1,969 even if they use the funeral director to deal with preparing and transporting the body. This is a service that used to be done by families themselves as their duty to their loved ones. This petition is about asking our parliaments to take a very serious look at the scandalous cost of providing even the most basic of funerals. Please support this petition and encourage your friends to do so.