Cost of dying increases in Wolverhampton

Burials and cremations will go up by £50 and the fee for securing a burial plot – known as an exclusive right of burial – will increase £50 to £1,922 under Wolverhampton Council plans.

Meanwhile grieving families will have to pay an extra £110 if a pathologist has to remove a body part or organ during a private post mortem examination in Wolverhampton.

The council's cabinet signed off on the increases – dubbed 'shocking' by the leader of the opposition – at a meeting last week.

It means families requesting a post mortem will have to pay a fee if a body part or organ is removed during examination.

Post mortems are routinely carried out at the request of the region's coroner when there is an unexplained, unexpected or unnatural death, with the costs covered by the coroner's court.

But it is possible for families to request a private post mortem, carried out at their own expense and often within hospital mortuaries.

Tory leader, Councillor Wendy Thompson, said: "It is not helpful to families to have an extra charge because funerals cost quite a considerable amount of money and the local council is not being sympathetic.

"I find it quite shocking that at a time like this, when it really matters that local authorities are being helpful and supportive to families, they are actually making things worse for them."

Cremation charges for people aged 17 and over will rise from £725 to £775, and the cost of renewing a burial plot for a further 25 years will rise by £5 to £640.

But there will not be any rise in the interment fee for burials – the charge for digging the grave at the time of the funeral.

The extra cash from the rise in fees is expected to help reduce the council's projected £6 million deficit, but officers have admitted they are uncertain by how much.

A report to the cabinet resources panel said: "It is important to be aware that additional income from increases in fees and charges is uncertain, as the resulting impact upon demand that will arise from changes in fees and charges cannot be predicted with certainty, although this is considered during the price setting process."

A council spokesman added: “The council reviews the fees and charges for different services each year.

"There are essential services where we try and keep rises to an absolute minimum – for example this year we are not proposing any increase in interment (burial) fees.

"For other services across the council we will increase, freeze or reduce prices based on reviewing the cost of providing that service and the demand for it.

"Income from fees and charges make an important contribution to enable the council to continue to provide these services at a time of challenging financial circumstances.”