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Dignity said the
7-percent year-on-year rise in the number of deaths in England,
Scotland and Wales represented a rate of change not seen for
over 60 years.
"This has been an extraordinary year, with the number of deaths
changing in percentage terms by a greater amount than any year
since 1952," the firm said. "As a result, the group's funeral
and cremation volumes were much higher than originally
expected."
A spokeswoman said the firm did not know the reason for the
increase. She added that the broader trend was that the rate of
deaths had been dropping since the 1970s and was forecast to
start rising again in the 2020s.
Dignity said its underlying operating profit for 2015 was 98.7
million pounds ($138 million), up 16 percent on the 2014 figure.
(Reporting by Kate Holton; writing by Estelle Shirbon; editing
by Paul Sandle)
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