Funerals price war

Grieving families are choosing to take their departed loved ones out of Southampton to save hundreds of pounds in cremation fees, the Daily Echo can reveal.

One funeral director has told how two-thirds of his customers are deserting the city’s crematorium because it is one of the most expensive in the country.

As the Daily Echo revealed yesterday, it comes as council chiefs are set to hike the cost of a cremation again – to £650 – little over a year after it was £450.

That will make it £150 more than the new Wessex Vale crematorium in West End and £200 more than the next nearest at Portchester, near Fareham.

Now a price war is brewing after cheaper rivals vowed to peg fees or keep rises to a minimum.

Wessex Vale, which opened in December, charges £525 for a cremation, including an organist, and even offers a £25 discount for an early morning service. Bosses have vowed not to increase charges this year.

Portchester Crematorium currently charges £446 which managers plan to increase by just £11 from April to cover rising costs.

Leading Hampshire funeral director Paul Capper said: “Southampton is one of the dearest in the country and offers the poorest of service. It’s grubby, dirty, dated and not very well kept.

“There has been a great need for another crematorium in the area for years. Wessex Vale has come along with sympathetic, highly trained staff and a building which is incredibly pleasant to be in.”

Gary Trevett, of Southampton-based Langdown and Trevett funeral directors, said in ten out of the past dozen cremations services he had arranged, families had chosen Wessex Vale over Southampton.

“They are going for Wessex Vale because of the price,” he added.

Another leading city funeral director said: “A lot of people still don’t realise they have got the choice of the two. Once Wessex Vale gets established it will make a difference.

“People were complaining last year about the rise from £450 to £600. If they are going to put their prices up again they are foolish, they will price themselves out of the market.

“When you look at another crematorium that can do it cheaper and is nicer, people will think, let’s give it a whirl.”

Lisa Johnson, manager of Wessex Vale Crematorium, said the firm had planned to seize the gap in the market between Southampton and Portchester. She said: “It could be our location, it could their waiting lists, or it could be their higher costs. Our price is definitely fixed for 2010.”

Southampton City Council claims it needs to raise fees to help pay for four new cremators and mercury abatement facilities to meet new rules on emissions.

It said the number of cremations between April to December last year had dropped to 2,185 from 2,470 in the same period in 2008.

Councillor Matt Dean, Cabinet member for environment, said this was in line with a national trend due to a drop in registered deaths.

“We regularly speak to our customers to make sure they are happy with the service we provide. In a recent survey 98 per cent of customers told us they were pleased with the service they received. Our customers are certainly not telling us they are unhappy.”

He insisted Southampton is making “big improvements” to customer comfort and convenience with a new book of remembrance room, refurbished large chapel, improved grounds and memorial options.