Regulatory model including Progressive Licensing scheme for Funeral Directors: report to Scottish Ministers

Customer Expectations

17. Recent evidence has been developed by a number of key businesses and stakeholders in the funeral sector to understand the expectations of the public and the bereaved in relation to the current controls and compliance measures. Dignity commissioned the report ‘Time to talk about quality and standards’, the Competition and Markets Authority issued the aforementioned ‘Funerals market study: Interim report and consultation’ and the NAFD has surveyed their members to help shape their policy direction with questions related to raising standards in the funeral industry (Annex A).

18. The participant responses in Dignity’s commissioned report demonstrates an expectation from those who have accessed the services of a Funeral Director that there are already common standards of operational practice, and that businesses are subject to quality and standards regulation. In the piece of qualitative research published by Dignity, the realisation that this was not the case evoked a very strong reaction from participants in the survey group. This reaction is met by a strong desire from a number of stakeholders and businesses within Scotland who deliver these services to introduce a proportionate and appropriate form of regulation – “a level playing field for all”.