Upheld: Service failures generally complaint against Co-op Funeral Plans Limited
Financial Ombudsman decision DRN-5654664 of 2025-09-19T00:00:00+00:00. Service failures generally complaint against Co-op Funeral Plans Limited. Outcome: Upheld.
Decision detail
| Reference | DRN-5654664 |
|---|---|
| Decision date | 2025-09-19T00:00:00+00:00 |
| Firm | Co-op Funeral Plans Limited |
| Product | Life / income protection |
| Claim type | Service failures generally |
| Outcome | Upheld |
| Remedy | Co-op Funeral Plans Limited directed to refund the estate £1,035.00 (comprising £545 for 'care for your loved one', £370 for 'care for you', and £120 for embalming) plus interest at 8% per annum from the date of the funeral until date of payment. Co-op to provide tax deduction certificate if requested. |
Summary
Mr C complained on behalf of his late mother Mrs C's estate that Co-op Funeral Plans Limited failed to deliver her funeral in accordance with her pre-paid burial plan. The complaint centered on delays in taking Mrs C into care, poor communication regarding transportation from Scotland to England, inadequate support for funeral arrangements, and failure to provide a charitable collection box. Co-op acknowledged coordination and communication failures and offered partial refunds. The ombudsman upheld the complaint, finding that while Mr C could not be compensated personally (as only the estate is an eligible complainant), the value of paid services was diminished by Co-op's failures. The ombudsman directed Co-op to refund £1,035.00 plus 8% interest from the date of funeral.
The Ombudsman's reasoning
The ombudsman upheld the complaint on the basis that Co-op's poor communication and delays in collecting Mrs C and arranging her transportation diminished the value of services provided. While the ombudsman could not award compensation to Mr C personally (as the eligible complainant is Mrs C's estate, not Mr C in his personal capacity), the ombudsman could assess whether the value of paid services was reduced. The ombudsman found that the 'care for your loved one' element was diminished by collection delays, justifying a 50% refund of that component, and that the 'care for you' element (support for funeral arrangements) was entirely diminished, justifying a 100% refund. The ombudsman found the embalming refund offered by Co-op reasonable given material costs involved.
How this compares
| Group | Decisions | Uphold rate |
|---|---|---|
| Co-op Funeral Plans Limited, all decisions | 39 | 47% |
| Service failures generally, all decisions | 32,767 | 33% |
| Life / income protection, all decisions | 10,661 | 20% |
Source
Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website