THE family members of larger people will be slugged with a new fee on their death because of their size.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Carr Villa Cemetery and Crematorium has introduced a new oversize gravesite fee for those requiring a plot larger than the regular 210 x 70 centimetres.
The fee of $225 was introduced on July 1, and must be paid on top of the regular burial costs – almost all of which have increased by 15 per cent in the 2014-15 Launceston City Council budget.
A single depth site starts at $1186, while a double plot will put you back at least $1387.
A fee for larger plots is not unique to Launceston and is occurring at other locations around Australia.
The council’s Carr Villa and parking manager Andrew Frost said the cost was in line with what the council paid to prepare the graves.
‘‘The council charges fees for burials based on the costs we incur in preparing graves, similar to other cemeteries,’’ Mr Frost said.
‘‘This is to ensure ratepayers are not subsidising the cost of burials.’’
He said the fees were widely publicised as part of the proposed statutory estimates earlier his year.
The state’s largest funeral home, Finney Funeral Service managing director Mark Graham said cemetery prices had increased but it was a reflection of what was occurring around the country.
It has been widely reported in recent years that burial costs were rising significantly as not only the cost of land in cities became a factor, but also the declining number of burials compared with cremations.
Some plots in Sydney are understood to sell for as much as $20,000 and burials make up a considerably smaller proportion of what they once did, about 35 per cent.
It was previously reported that Carr Villa had 329 cremations and 261 burials in 2012.
The trend was put down to fewer people following religious traditions, cost and people less likely to tend to a gravesite.