NAFD News Competition and Markets Authority introduce new measures F uneral Directors in Northern Ireland will have to display price lists in branches and online from September as part of a new, legally-binding Order by the Competition and Markets Authority. From September 16th 2021, any business that operates funerals and crematoria will have to comply with a range of measures aimed at helping bereaved people make more informed choices with easier access to prices and services. Failure to do so could involve legal injunctions being imposed by the CMA and leave operators open to legal action on behalf of clients who feel they have been potentially over charged or mis-sold a funeral. In introducing the new, UK-wide obligations, the CMA said that it understood “that funeral directors have the best interests of their clients at heart.” It added: “However, our Market Investigation into the sector has shown that, for many people, arranging a funeral can still be a confusing process and far more expensive than they expected.” Under the Order, funeral directors must display a Standardised Price List clearly and prominently in their branch window, inside the branch, and online where the business has an online presence. The List must include the headline price of the CMA Attended Funeral and CMA Unattended Funeral (if offered), the price of the individual items comprising the CMA Attended Funeral and the price of certain additional products and services. More details
can be found on the Government website. At the same time, the Order prohibits funeral directors from making payments to incentivise hospitals, palliative care services, hospices, care homes or similar institutions to refer customers, and from soliciting for business from customers through your provision of services under coroner and police contracts. Jon Levett, Chief Executive of the National Association of Funeral Directors, said: “Although many funeral firms do publish pricing information online, some don’t and there is a wide range of formats used which can be confusing for bereaved consumers at a difficult time. “The CMA’s requirements, although extremely complex in places for small businesses to navigate, support the delivery of high standards to funeral consumers and bring consistency to the process of choosing a funeral director. “The NAFD will support funeral firms over the summer to ensure they have all the information they need to comply – and provide feedback to the CMA on these new processes, enabling them to refine them, over time, to ensure they assist bereaved people in making informed choices, and promote healthy competition in the funeral sector.” The NAFD has written to all Funeral Times subscribers offering support materials it has on its website – whether they are members or not – available at nafd.org.uk with Mr Levett adding “It is important that the profession pulls together for the benefit of bereaved people”.
FuneralTimes | 49
