Death without god and the funeral industry

Today's funerals are a Victorian invention, or at least, poor vestiges of past style. The Victorians "invented" the coffin, the hearse, the black clothes, granite memorials, burial gowns, drapes and most of all the job of funeral director. We unquestioningly go on, the way we were brought up, to regard funerals as if that is the way they have to be. The only difference is that petrol is used instead of horsepower to pull the hearse.

Why is there a coffin? It is not required by law. Before 1750 everyone in Europe, except the aristocracy, was buried in a blanket off the bed. Wool first. Later linen was used. A shroud is a possible alternative today - see Natural Burials. If the grave had a marker, it used to be made out of wood. It is a fallacy to say wood will not last. Look at the doors on any ancient church.

Funeral directors have created the mystique that a funeral is an unfathomable and difficult thing that only they, as experts, know about. With the decline in church attendance, we turn less to the clergy and give authority to funeral directors instead. Their commercial basis means that in handing over to them the possibility of exploitation comes in.

In the relationship between the funeral director and the client, the former has a marked psychological and commercial advantage, so that the balance of bargaining power is tilted in his favour. This warning from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) is backed up with statistics showing that, owing to the distress of the bereavement, those who seek the funeral director's services rarely obtain more than one estimate.

Because of their lack of knowledge and their distress, funeral arrangers are vulnerable and need a measure of protection. People do not arrange funerals often enough to acquire the background knowledge which guides them when they make other major purchases, and they may be in no state of mind to make best use of such knowledge as they have. The OFT believes that some form of intervention, directed in particular at making the service provided by funeral directors more accurately match the preference of funeral arrangers, is necessary and desirable. They caution the industry not to take too much comfort from the low complaints figures since, in this sensitive area, most people are too upset to complain about the standards of service or the price and want to put the whole affair behind them. For further information see Resources and Contacts.

Travel Agent/Funeral Agent

Let us, with respect, compare two industries: the travel industry and the funerals industry. We are, thankfully, more familiar with the former than the latter, although both are concerned with journeys, in their different ways.

Last minute holiday deals on teletext and bargain flights booked on-line do not suit everyone, hence the continued presence of travel agents on our high streets. We feel we can use the travel agent to supply us with what we want. We feel in control of the transaction, we specify when, where, how much? Some clients are independent travellers. Their requirements are basic but important: reservations on ships or aeroplanes, travel insurance and visa information. Apart from that, they prefer to make their own arrangements, not necessarily to save money, but to have the freedom to please themselves. This aspect of the work does not mean commercial ruin for the travel agent. It forms part of the service they offer, with adequate margins built in.

Many people prefer a package. They "buy" a holiday, and pay up in full in advance, before they get there, for their accommodation, all the meals they will consume, all their drinks from the bar (in some schemes), their cycle and windsurfing hire, their entertainment, their excursions, without much knowledge of what the place will be like or what is actually offered. Much more money passes through the hands of the travel agent before it is dispersed. But this option is not for everyone.

Returning to the comparison with the funerals industry, present practice is much closer to the latter example where a complete package is on offer. If it suits, that's fine. Excellent value with no worries, and no responsibilities for the client. What we hope is that the funerals industry will realise also that there are clients akin to the independent traveller. They need and want to buy certain services, but there are things they want to take responsibility for and make decisions about themselves. These clients are thoughtful and discerning and willing to put time in to do their own research thoroughly if their venture is to be successful and satisfying. As far as commercial success is concerned, the travel industry flourishes through its policy of offering a professional service tailored to the needs of the client. The funerals industry need not fear loss of trade now that people are beginning to challenge their dominant role. The shrewd ones will continue to prosper by recognising this change and adapting their practice to become more flexible. Only those unwilling to adapt will find they have fewer clients.

Fears of a Pauper's Funeral

The Victorians' attitude to the shame of debt led them to create savings schemes designed to ensure that, if nothing else, the funeral could be paid for. There was no shame in poverty, but great shame in a pauper's funeral. This shame hides a fear, with a very real source. The body of anyone dying "on the parish", not provided for and without relatives to arrange a funeral, could be handed over for medical dissection. This was a terrifying `punishment' for anyone not able to afford their own funeral.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, dismemberment and dissection were sentences for certain convicted criminals, more feared than capital punishment. In 1832 it stopped being legal to cut up criminals, so that the poor and destitute were denied a funeral and substituted as an alternative for the surgeons to practise on.