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| Funeral support: MPs call for overhaul of 'outdated' system | Funeral support: MPs call for overhaul of 'outdated' system |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The cost of even the most basic funeral can drive families into debt, MPs have said as they urged an overhaul of the support system in England and Wales. | The cost of even the most basic funeral can drive families into debt, MPs have said as they urged an overhaul of the support system in England and Wales. |
| The means-tested benefit had been frozen at £700 since 2003, but even "simple" funerals cost over £1,200, the Work and Pensions Committee said. | The means-tested benefit had been frozen at £700 since 2003, but even "simple" funerals cost over £1,200, the Work and Pensions Committee said. |
| One mother had to freeze her son's body for months while she saved to pay for his funeral, the committee heard. | One mother had to freeze her son's body for months while she saved to pay for his funeral, the committee heard. |
| The government said it was modernising the bereavement benefit system. | The government said it was modernising the bereavement benefit system. |
| The average funeral in the UK now costs about £3,700, with funeral directors' fees rising well above the rate of inflation in recent years, the committee's report said. | The average funeral in the UK now costs about £3,700, with funeral directors' fees rising well above the rate of inflation in recent years, the committee's report said. |
| The rising cost of dying | The rising cost of dying |
| The government provides uncapped help with "necessary costs" - such as burial plot or cremation costs - but the £700 social fund funeral payment (SFFP) for other funeral expenses has been "dramatically eroded", MPs heard. | The government provides uncapped help with "necessary costs" - such as burial plot or cremation costs - but the £700 social fund funeral payment (SFFP) for other funeral expenses has been "dramatically eroded", MPs heard. |
| For that price, some companies offered only "direct cremations or burials", without a service, celebrant, mourners, choice of coffin or flowers, the report said. | For that price, some companies offered only "direct cremations or burials", without a service, celebrant, mourners, choice of coffin or flowers, the report said. |
| Families 'denied ashes' | Families 'denied ashes' |
| Furthermore, the system was "fundamentally flawed" and leading claimants into unforeseen debt, it said. | Furthermore, the system was "fundamentally flawed" and leading claimants into unforeseen debt, it said. |
| Applicants are required to provide a final bill from the funeral director, meaning the bereaved must commit to the expense before having any clear idea whether they are eligible for help, MPs found. | Applicants are required to provide a final bill from the funeral director, meaning the bereaved must commit to the expense before having any clear idea whether they are eligible for help, MPs found. |
| The cross-party committee heard of "distressing circumstances", including families who were denied their loved one's ashes because of a shortfall in the final payment. | The cross-party committee heard of "distressing circumstances", including families who were denied their loved one's ashes because of a shortfall in the final payment. |
| Labour MP Frank Field, chair of the committee, said the "opaque and outdated" system was hitting vulnerable people on low incomes. | Labour MP Frank Field, chair of the committee, said the "opaque and outdated" system was hitting vulnerable people on low incomes. |
| "Funeral payments for those who can prove they are entitled - and that is a very uncertain and onerous process - now fall far short of covering even a basic funeral," he said. | "Funeral payments for those who can prove they are entitled - and that is a very uncertain and onerous process - now fall far short of covering even a basic funeral," he said. |
| "We do not want a return to the spectre of miserable 'pauper's funerals'." | "We do not want a return to the spectre of miserable 'pauper's funerals'." |
| The National Association of Funeral Directors has been campaigning for a review of the SFFP and said the MPs' recommendations were long overdue. | The National Association of Funeral Directors has been campaigning for a review of the SFFP and said the MPs' recommendations were long overdue. |
| However, it took issue with a suggestion in the report that firms were not acting in the interests of the bereaved, saying a stringent code of practice is in place to ensure relatives are well cared for. | |
| "Local council burial and cremation charges are the single fastest rising cost of a funeral," it added. "These lie outside of funeral directors' control and have not been addressed in this report." | "Local council burial and cremation charges are the single fastest rising cost of a funeral," it added. "These lie outside of funeral directors' control and have not been addressed in this report." |
| UK funeral costs in 2015 | UK funeral costs in 2015 |
| Most expensive | Most expensive |
| Beckenham £5,372 | Beckenham £5,372 |
| Southgate £5,161 | Southgate £5,161 |
| Wandsworth £5,076 | Wandsworth £5,076 |
| Cheapest | Cheapest |
| Belfast £3,008 | Belfast £3,008 |
| Amersham £3,102 | Amersham £3,102 |
| Yeovil £3,152 | Yeovil £3,152 |
| Cost of a funeral soars to £3,700 - but what do you get? | Cost of a funeral soars to £3,700 - but what do you get? |
| The committee urged the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to negotiate with the representatives of funeral directors to agree a reasonable cost for a simple "fair funeral" and then set the maximum SFFP accordingly. | The committee urged the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to negotiate with the representatives of funeral directors to agree a reasonable cost for a simple "fair funeral" and then set the maximum SFFP accordingly. |
| Moreover, the bereavement benefit system was "particularly outdated" and should be extended to cover co-habiting couples who were not married or in a civil partnership, the committee said. | Moreover, the bereavement benefit system was "particularly outdated" and should be extended to cover co-habiting couples who were not married or in a civil partnership, the committee said. |
| 'Fairer scheme' | 'Fairer scheme' |
| About 21% of couples with dependent children in the UK were co-habiting in 2015, the Office for National Statistics estimated. | About 21% of couples with dependent children in the UK were co-habiting in 2015, the Office for National Statistics estimated. |
| The DWP said it was "modernising bereavement benefits, introducing a simpler and fairer scheme that will better assist people in what can be an extremely difficult time". | The DWP said it was "modernising bereavement benefits, introducing a simpler and fairer scheme that will better assist people in what can be an extremely difficult time". |
| "The planned new bereavement support payment will provide a higher lump sum payment than currently is offered and more people will be able to claim this full support now we have removed the lower age limit," a spokesman said. | "The planned new bereavement support payment will provide a higher lump sum payment than currently is offered and more people will be able to claim this full support now we have removed the lower age limit," a spokesman said. |
| The DWP estimates it pays SFFP "in around 7% of deaths in Great Britain". | The DWP estimates it pays SFFP "in around 7% of deaths in Great Britain". |