Burial law should be reformed to stop family rows, says Law Commission

The law must be changed to stop families ignoring the burial wishes of the dead, the Law Commission has said. 

Currently someone's wishes have no legal standing even if expressed in a will and family members can overrule them after death if they decide to do something different. 

The body which reviews laws for the Government says new environmentally-friendly burials and a rising number of family disputes mean the law is out of date and needs review. 

Experts said more complex families were fuelling a rise in rows over what should happen to a relative after they die. 

The Commission said new burial trends also mean there is a greater need for regulation to allow people more choice over what happens after they die. 

Announcing plans to recommend a reform of the law, it said: "The law is, in some instances, out of touch with the public’s expectations, and is not always reflective of diverse family structures and an increasingly multicultural and environmentally-aware society. 

"The problems in the law lead to additional stress and emotional upset at an already distressing time in people’s lives and additional cost to the individuals and organisations (including local and central Government) involved."

It added that new rules would "seek to provide greater certainty that a person’s wishes in respect of what happens to their body following death are respected."

Growing environmental consciousness means people are opting for new processes such as resomation, which is an eco-friendly alternative to cremation. 

It involves immersing the body in a solution designed to break it down in a way which uses less energy and produces less emissions than traditional cremation. 

Another method, promession, involves freeze drying the body using liquid nitrogen before it is buried in a biodegradable coffin. 

Gavin Faber, a partner at law firm Irwin Mitchell, who specialises in the area, said: "It's often the case where it's perhaps a second or third marriage, and they will want that person buried locally to them, whereas the children or first wife or even siblings may want them buried somewhere else, and the law is very unclear as to who takes priority."

He said that the number of legal disputes over burial and scattering of ashes had risen significantly during the 20 years he had worked in the area. 

But he urged caution over allowing wishes expressed in a will to take ultimate precedence. 

"If you say the wishes of the deceased take priority you could be talking about something which was done 40 years before they died," he said, adding that current circumstances and wishes of family and friends should also be taken into account. 

The current situation can hand control over someone's ashes to the family member who signed papers at the crematorium, he added.

These can sometimes not be the closest family members, who are often too upset to deal with the administration of the funeral.

Families often disagree on whether to split someone's ashes, with some family members even using them in tattoos or jewellery.