In a meeting before Christmas with the NAFD, the Competition and Markets Authority said that it considers levels of compliance with the Funerals Market Order, to date, to be ‘good’ – particularly given that statutory regulation is completely new to the sector and it can see that the majority of firms are now wholly or partially compliant with the Order.
The CMA enforcement team has made it clear that their approach is firstly to educate, encourage and advise funeral firms towards full compliance – with the aim of getting as many funeral firms across the line as possible. But, while resorting to tough sanctions might not be the first tool they choose from their armoury to address non-compliance, they’ve also made it clear that the full range of sanctions, including court proceedings, remains open to them for those who simply refuse to comply and the next compliance reporting deadline, in April 2022, may trigger the arrival of tougher sanctions for those who simply refuse to meet the legal requirements.
Jon Levett, NAFD Chief Executive, explained the immediate steps taken by the NAFD for those which, at the Autumn Meeting, he cautioned against becoming compliance ‘refuseniks.’
“We immediately sent letters, in conjunction with IFSO, to wholly non-compliant members, notifying them that we’d audited their website and urging them to make contact with us to get any help they needed to comply swiftly,” he said. “As their trade association, we want to see them thrive and to do that, they need to comply, so we’re keen to help in any way we can. We are also calling individual members and offering tailored support.”
In early December, the Governing Board met to review compliance levels and discuss a strategy for NAFD members who don’t comply.
After the meeting, NAFD President Kate Edwards outlined the process that the NAFD will follow from January: “It is the Governing Board’s view that the NAFD should continue to expect high standards of its members, even once we are in a more supportive and advocacy role – and our position on all compliance requirements should match those of industry regulators,” she said.
“The NAFD’s role from January will be to support and advocate for funeral firms, rather than to monitor their standards. However, to ensure quality standards among members, renewal of NAFD membership each year will be contingent on firms being successfully IFSO registered.
“For 2022, all renewed members will automatically be registered with IFSO and so will begin the 2022 membership year as IFSO registrants.”
IFSO will also begin their work in ‘encouragement’ mode – following the CMA feedback. However, for those who continue to refuse to comply, an IFSO investigation and disciplinary process will commence.
Added Kate: “Any firms who are removed from IFSO registration will not be able to renew as NAFD members until such time as they have regained their IFSO registration.
“The NAFD will offer support to the member in resolving any issues, to assist them in regaining their IFSO registration, but, ultimately, NAFD membership must stand as a mark of quality and so proving that you are operating to high standards is a benchmark the NAFD is not willing to compromise upon.”
Read more about the new NAFD inspectorate team in January’s edition of Funeral Director Monthly, the membership magazine of the National Association of Funeral Directors. Subscribe today by emailing [email protected].