Councils aren’t doing enough to support “dignity in death”, with one North Island city tripling ash burial prices and hiking regular burial costs by half, funeral directors say.

The Funeral Directors’ Association of New Zealand survey found three-quarters of members thought councils were failing to ensure all Kiwis were buried or cremated with dignity, no matter their financial circumstances.

The findings coincide with the association’s latest review of council burial and cremation costs, with annual increases announced on July 1.

Most councils increased prices by 2% to 4%, but burial and ash burial costs in Marlborough were up 8% and the price of an ash burial jumped almost 10% in Palmerston North, association chief executive Gillian Boyes said.

“An extreme exception is Tauranga City Council, who have increased burial costs by 50% and ash burial by 200%.”

An average burial costs $4359, more than $1660 above the maximum Work and Income Funeral Grant of $2697.

Some families have discovered reserved burial plots had been used for someone else, or plots hadn't been dug big enough for the casket, Funeral Directors' Association of New Zealand chief executive Gillian Boyes said.

Nearly three-quarters of funeral homes surveyed were seeing families choose cremation over burial, reduce funeral services or seek financial assistance, Boyes said.

“In some areas such as Tauranga, where burial costs are now disproportionately high compared with neighbouring councils, we are concerned burials, a traditionally important end-of-life choice, is now limited to those with greater financial means.”

Council policies and procedures were also negatively impacting families, with inflexible or limited burial times, booking system issues and inconsistent information between different staff, Boyes said.

“There were also errors that cause great stress to families, such as reserved plots used for someone else and plots dug by contractors that weren’t big enough for the casket.”

Councils need to do more to support families facing increasing burial and cremation costs, funeral directors say. Photo / 123rf

Councils didn’t always consult with the public on fee increases and failed to engage with funeral directors when making changes to services or service provision, those surveyed said.

They also expected prompt payment of their costs, which in 90% of cases were charged via the funeral home, Boyes said.

“80% of those surveyed said they occasionally or regularly had to carry those costs as the council bill is due before the family has paid.”

With the Government unlikely to increase the Work and Income Funeral Grant enough to cover even the average burial cost, councils – as the monopoly provider of death care infrastructure in many centres – should do more to support their communities, she said.

“Every New Zealander deserves dignity in death.”

Tauranga City Council acting head of spaces and places Ross Hudson said cemetery and cremation services were previously making an annual deficit of about $500,000.

He said these were funded entirely through user fees, with no contribution from general rates.

“This differs from some other councils, which partially fund cemetery services through rates, allowing them to charge lower user fees.

“The fee changes moved burial and ash burial fees closer to full cost recovery to support the long-term sustainability of providing cemetery services.”

Hudson said the council had reduced the adult cremation fee – it was previously set above the actual cost of providing the service.

He said the changes aligned fees more closely with the cost of delivering each service.

“[The] Council understands that fee changes may influence some families’ choices; however, burial remains an important option for many people for cultural, religious and personal reasons.”

Hudson said the fee changes went through consultation as part of the 2026/27 user fees and charges review.

“Feedback received from the community and funeral directors was considered by elected members before a final decision was made.”