Today the writer, part of the Probate team at MG Legal, attended their first funeral on Facebook. It was a surreal experience but, in the circumstances, it was the only way to say goodbye to a beloved friend. 

 

The experience leaves our Probate Solicitors in Lancaster wondering whether it could be the way forward. 

 

When someone passes away, it can be incredibly difficult to be able to attend their funeral, even in normal circumstances, for a variety of reasons. Whether it’s childcare, illness, work or simply travelling the distance to make their funeral, no matter how much you want to attend to say goodbye and pay your respects to your loved one, sometimes it’s just not possible. 

With COVID-19 restricting how we live our lives, there has been an introduction at most funerals of video links, enabling a limited number of people to physically attend the funeral (to ensure social distancing), whilst ensuring that the majority of people are able to login online and be a part of the service. 

 

So, the question that our expert Probate Solicitors have been pondering, is whether this introduction of technology at funerals could help more people have the opportunity to say goodbye if they are unable to physically attend themselves. 

 

Another interesting point, would be the decrease of costs if less people attended the funeral, and instead choose to pay their respects from the comfort of their own home. 

 

According to research carried out by the UK funeral services group, Dignity, due to the current worldwide pandemic, many mourners are choosing to have a simple service for their loved one, with an increase of 20% more simple services compared to last year’s figures. 

 

Dignity confirmed that the amount spent on a funeral has decreased by almost £450.00, standing now at £2,200.00. The decrease is due to a shorter service (to decrease socialisation time) and less requirements for cars and any ‘extras’ (as less people are attending the funeral themselves). Overall, the decrease has led to a dip in profits for the funeral sector, with operating profits falling by 11% for the first three months of 2020. 

 

Surprisingly, the figures released by Dignity only cover the months January to March, and therefore only the first short period from lockdown was included. It will be interesting for our Probate Solicitors in Lancaster to see whether these figures are affected even further throughout the main period of lockdown. 

 

So, whilst it could be some time before we see funeral services return to ‘normal’, it will be interesting to see whether there is an increased requirement for video streaming the services following the lifting of lockdown restrictions, to help those who are unable to physically attend or to reduce overall costs. 

 

Rest assured; our team will keep you updated as trends change. 

 

If you’ve lost your loved one and need assistance in dealing with their Estate, our expert Probate Solicitors in Lancaster are on hand to help. We can help you from the start of the process, all the way through to finalising your loved one’s Estate. Contact our team online, here, or email wills@mglegal.co.uk.