Woman awarded compensation after her mother’s ashes got lost in the post
The company tried to blame the incident on Royal Mail but then claimed Mrs R could be heard laughing in a phone call she made to complain about the incident
A woman has received £1,000 after her mother's ashes were opened up by Border Force officials and arrived with some spilling out.
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The woman, known as Mrs R, paid more than £1,400 for a direct cremation for her mother, known as Mrs M, with Plan with Grace.
However, a misunderstanding about Mrs R's address meant that her mother's ashes were sent via an EU country and by the time they arrived at her home, there was “some spillage and loss”.
She was also charged a customs fee.
Plan with Grace argued that they didn't owe Mrs R compensation because she was heard laughing about the incident in a phone call with them.
The ombudsman insisted the company repay £1,000 of the bill.
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Mrs M died in April 2024 and was cremated on May 10. She had a prepaid plan with Plan with Grace Under and her remains should have been delivered to her family by June 7, but the company did not arrange the delivery until June 14.
Mrs R received a notification saying she needed to pay a customs fee on June 17, she paid this and received the ashes ten days later.
The financial ombudsman ruled that Plan with Grace had violated Royal Mail's terms by sending the remains via the service, as it has a 50g weight restriction for human ashes, despite a entire human remains typically weighing 2kg.
Mrs R initially complained to the company which sent flowers, reimbursed the customs fee, and offered a voucher.
Ombudsman Jo Chilvers said that “this is not a memory that is easily forgotten" and there had been a "lasting impact" from how Mrs M's ashes had been received.
The company tried to blame the incident on Royal Mail but then claimed Mrs R could be heard laughing in a phone call she made to complain about the incident.
She can be heard saying: “I’m laughing but it’s not funny, you know.”
Chilvers said: “I’m not persuaded this invalidates her testimony regarding the distress and upset she has experienced.”
She added that Mrs R was simply “masking her distress with joviality and humour”.