Towards consistent oversight of standards in the UK funerals market

By Andrew Judd, CEO of National Association of Funeral Directors, UK

The funeral profession in the UK is going through unprecedented regulatory and market change.
Fresh from the introduction of price transparency measures by the UK Government, through the Competition and Markets Authority, we are now seeing statutory regulation and licensing introduced in Scotland by the Scottish Government, through a recently published Code of Practice. England, Wales and Northern Ireland have no definite plans to follow suit but will be keeping a close eye on developments.

The UK financial regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, has, in the last 18 months, begun regulating pre-paid funeral plans, while at the same time the broad funeral market is experiencing a shift in consumer demands created by the cost of living crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, including a rise in demand for direct cremation. The independent inquiry into the crimes of David Fuller is likely to bring further change.

With such a widely fragmented landscape, the National Association of Funeral Directors, the UK’s largest and most inclusive funeral sector trade body, is perfectly placed to offer a broad and balanced overview of the entire funerals market; it is supporting members and bereaved people through these challenges and opportunities which, while leading to the wider death management pathway becoming increasingly fragmented and overloaded, operating at absolute capacity in most areas of the UK, has also seen some good.

It is the NAFD’s opinion that on the whole standards have been improving sector wide, with clear benefits delivered for consumers. A general increase in transparency and visibility of the work of funeral directors ‘back of house’ has driven up standards. The NAFD believes that the standards achieved by NAFD members, matched against our requirements, has always been high and in the public interest – and where these fell short, members have always generally been quick to respond.

Since 1905, the NAFD has worked with and for its members to provide expert support, education services and advocacy, and to support consumer choice. However, the changing commercial environment has created a clear need for voluntary regulatory regimes like the NAFD’s to respond accordingly, which in turn has necessitated the introduction of more thorough inspections against an increased and more complex set of standards; longer and more thorough inspections are now conducted by the Independent Funeral Standards Organisation (IFSO), which operates independently of the NAFD.

There are clearly significant commercial advantages for NAFD members of being able to meet and demonstrate their high standards, but the market alone cannot be the ultimate guarantor of quality and standards, given the very unique set of circumstances that influence the purchasing of a funeral, and the nature of funeral care – which requires high levels of sensitivity, discretion, expert communication and the absolute assurance of dignity and respect for deceased people.
The purchasing of a funeral is influenced by a variety of different factors; from location and personal experience, to recommendation, cost, cultural requirements, the wishes of the deceased person and many more. It is an intensely personal choice, and it is our opinion that consumers now (and in the future) benefit from diversity and variety of offering, provided that the level of quality is assured.

The current public policy and regulatory focus on the consumer experience in the UK, on greater protections, informed choice, and increased transparency is a welcome development; however the NAFD is concerned that there remains significant inconsistency of quality sector-wide, which leads to consumer detriment. The quality of the sector’s core offering – the care of deceased people – remains free from statutory regulation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The NAFD sets the standards that need to be met, but for our members – and only our members. There are a significant percentage of funeral firms that are operating outside of any kind of oversight – either from the NAFD or from the other trade body in the UK sector, the National Society for Independent and Allied Funeral Directors (SAIF).

This creates an uneven playing field, which adversely affects competition. On quality and standards there is potential for a ‘race to the bottom’, as the investment in meeting high standards against a code of practice is not required for all practitioners and ‘low cost’ funeral options, such as a direct disposal (cremation).

The NAFD ultimately wishes to see all funeral homes in the UK required to meet the same quality standards that we set for our regularly inspected members, with clear and impactful sanctions applied should the services provided not meet the expected standard.

A funeral director that is not able to meet the standards exemplified by a code comparable to our own (which aligns with the Scottish Funeral Director Code of Practice and that of the other sector trade body, SAIF) should, in NAFD’s opinion, be prevented from trading and this is a view we have presented to the UK Government.

Read whole article in the spring issue of THANOS magazine
- you can read online at pages 12-13

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