Something many of us never consider is the cost of a funeral. Death is not something we like to think about and as a result associated costs are not always addressed and this can cause real problems. Because funerals are expensive.
When someone close to passes you do not want to have to be worried about money do you? SunLife have produced this infographic that looks at the average cost of a basic funeral in the UK today.
The average funeral cost in the UK – shocking
It is shockingly expensive isn’t it (particularly in London) and is set to continue to rise. It has increased by 2.9% from 2014.
So what exactly are you paying for?
The cost of a funeral, is made up of the fees for the cremation or burial, the funeral director, the doctor and the person conducting the funeral.
There is a huge gulf in burial costs between regions (almost £3000 between London and Northern Island) but cremation costs are on a par across the country and significantly cheaper.
The UK average price for a burial is £4,104 and the average price for a cremation is £3282.
Making plans to cover your funeral costs may seem morbid to think about but actually it’s really sensible and will remove a weight of worry for those left behind. Funeral plans really do help families and are our last financial responsibility in some ways but an important one to take care of.
The average funeral cost in the UK is a collaborative post
It’s quite depressing how much the average cost of a funeral is rising so much more above the rate of inflation. With so many families struggling to come up with the capital to pay for a funeral and all the attributes that go with it, there is a discernible decline in the value of the average person’s estate across the country.
A formidable percentage of the working generation have a an altered view point on saving and investment than in comparison to those active half a century ago. Historically there were of course less opportunities and distractions to absorb personal equity and certainly following the second world war and perhaps due to the financial crash at the end of the 1920’s, saving was pretty much taught from early youth, through to maturity and independence.
Budgeting for a considerable number of people is not given the focus it should. There are social pressures, personal wants and let’s face it, less by the way of financial security (specifically employment longevity).
Regions have always shown a differential in pricing, and again economists can clearly illustrate the ever more widening gap between more affluent areas and those places considered to be in decline.
This being said, stronger education and guidance of financial planning and the merits of saving would be beneficial to the long term economy and of course more immediate situations such as paying for funeral costs. Most people who rent or own a property have a contents insurance; not everyone gets burgled or loses their possessions in a fire thankfully and yet everyone will step over the life threshold one day.
Not everyone is comfortable talking about the inevitable, all I can remark through personal experience and dealing with clients is that those who have made arrangements seem to cope so much more than those who have to make all the arrangements after their loved one has departed.