RISING costs have caused funeral prices in Scotland to soar in the past decade, figures show.
Over the last 13 years there has been a 43.1 per cent increase in funeral costs – more than double the rise in house prices and wages.
Despite a 3.1 per cent drop in costs since last year, the average funeral in Scotland still costs £3,601,compared to £1,945 in 2004.
Last month, the Scottish Government released a Funeral Costs Plan to tackle the issues, with 10 key actions, including a Planning Your Own Funeral toolkit, as well as the development of statutory guidance on funeral costs.
Recent research from Citizens Advice Scotland estimated about one in 10 people struggle to pay for a funeral.
It also showed stark regional variation for burial costs in Scotland, with Edinburgh, East Dunbartonshire and Glasgow the areas with the highest costs, compared to Renfrewshire, Shetland and the Western Isles, which had the lowest.
John Birrell, chairman of the Scottish Working Group on Funeral Poverty, which represents nearly 20 organisations, has campaigned about the rising cost of funerals and possible solutions to “funeral poverty” that many find themselves in as a result.
He put the reasons down to increasing burial and cremation costs – which are mostly provided by local authorities and set the cost for the disposal of the body – and rising funeral director charges.
He said: “Our basic concern has been both the increase in the costs, and the challenge that presents to people on lower income, those on benefits and the working poor.
“When confronted with the death of a loved one, you need to have the disposable funds to deal with cost.
“Many people would be challenged by that, but if you’re already facing poverty or on the brink with that kind of cost, then you’re pushed over in unsustainable debt.
“And that affects your grief. Grieving people are vulnerable purchasers, doing it at a time when it’s difficult to think straight and think logically. People may then purchase above their means.”
Keith Robson, charity director of Age Scotland, said this was a particular concern for older people on fixed and lower incomes who are left facing sudden and unexpected costs while grieving and vulnerable.
He said: “Those engaging funeral services are motivated to give their loved ones a good send-off and are rarely in the mood to haggle or scrimp.
“We would advise everyone to get advice about preparing for funeral costs, consider cost-effective options, and encourage government to ensure modest but respectful funerals can be afforded by those most in need.”
In the rest of the UK, funeral prices have risen 4.9 per cent in just a year and more than 70 per cent in a decade, with the average funeral in the UK costing £4,078.
London is still the most expensive place to die overall in the UK, with an average of £5,951, 65 per cent more than the cost of a funeral in Scotland, according to the The SunLife Cost Of Dying report.
Mr Birrell said there were a number of alternatives appearing to help deal with the costs
He added: “We encourage people to talk to their families about what they would want, plan it out, write it down and to make the whole thing much more transparent than it is at the moment.”
A Scottish Government spokeswoman said it was taking “decisive action”, adding: “We see local government as a key partner and will continue to work closely with councils, the funeral sector and other support services to address this issue.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel