Large people would be charged $200 more than others getting cremated under Hastings plan

Large people should be charged more in cremation fees due to the extra time it takes to process the oversized coffins, the manager of Hastings cemeteries says.

In a paper going before Hastings District Council this week, manager Isak Bester brings several matters to the councillors' attention, including the extra time involved in cremating "oversize caskets".

Oversize caskets are used for anyone weighing more than 150kg.

While an average-sized person's casket takes about 2½ hours to cremate, an oversize one takes between 4½ hours and 5½ hours.

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At present, the costs of providing burial and cremation services and the maintenance of facilities was not enough to recover costs, and in December the Hawke's Bay Crematorium Committee asked its staff to investigate the implementation of a relevant charge for cremating oversize caskets.

The fees, including those for cremation, were lower in Hastings than some other areas and "retaining the fees and charges at their current level would not address the issue of declining cost recovery levels", the paper said,

To address this, the paper going before council proposes increases to various fees and to add new fees.

One of these would be a new "oversize casket" fee of $200 charged on top of the $700 charged for average-sized caskets.

It is also proposed to start charging for after hours callouts. At present there is no charge despite callouts for arranging urgent burials and cremations increasing. There would be a $300 fee for after-hours callouts.

Councillors will consider the proposals at a meeting on Thursday. If adopted, the new fees and charges would take effect from July 1.

A council spokeswoman said between six and eight "oversize caskets" had been cremated at the crematorium in the past year. That was out of about 700 a year.

Funeral Directors Association of New Zealand president Gary Taylor said he had not come across such a scheme before, and it was not something he supported.

"Anything that limits a family's ability to make a choice, we as an association would question.

"Funerals are all about choice. They're about families being able to make choices based on good information given to them by funeral directors and, if those decisions are going to be clouded, then I don't think that's a progressive step forward."