Funeral home in ‘care of bodies’ police inquiry has £62,000 debt

A FUNERAL directors firm that is under investigation by police over its handling of bodies owes more than £62,000 in unpaid county court judgment debts, The Telegraph can disclose.

Humberside Police is looking into reports of “concern for the care of the deceased” by Legacy Independent Funeral Directors, with over 120 of the force’s staff understood to be working on the case. It has now emerged that the funeral company has seven unpaid county court judgment bills spanning 2021 to 2023, totalling £62,015. It is not clear to whom the money is owed.

The Telegraph can also disclose that Legacy, which has three branches across East Yorkshire, was given £20,000 in government handouts during the Covid pandemic. Legacy could now face having to repay that money.

A spokesman for Hull city council said the local authority, which administered the grants on behalf of central Government, will be “exploring options to recoup its costs and any grants or loans that may be repayable”. In 2020, the company received two payments under the Government’s Small Business Grant Fund. The one-off grants were available to businesses that pay little or no business rates, to help them stay afloat during the pandemic.

The money came from central Government, and councils were responsible for distributing it to local companies who applied for a grant.

Hull city council paid out two grants of £10,000 each to Legacy Independent Funeral Directors.

Last week, Humberside Police arrested a man and a woman on suspicion of prevention of a lawful and decent burial, as well as fraud by false representation and fraud by abuse of position. They have been released on bail while the investigation continues.

Meanwhile, it can also be disclosed that Legacy has been on the brink of being struck off the Companies House register for the last two years because of overdue accounts.

The accounts are currently overdue and on Tuesday, the company was given a fifth warning that it could be struck off by Companies House.

Last week, police removed 35 bodies from branches of Legacy Independent Funeral Directors over concern about the way the deceased were being cared for and stored.

All three branches of the firm were cordoned off as officers began their investigation.

Since then, flowers and other tributes from well-wishers have been placed outside the premises. Humberside Police last week described the inquiry as “extremely complex and sensitive” and said the force was continuing to offer support to the families involved.

The bodies recovered have been taken to a local mortuary where they are being identified.

On Tuesday, officers were also in the process of recovering and transporting suspected ashes to the mortuary.

The firm’s website says it was established in 2010 and its sole director and owner is Robert Bush.

Yesterday Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, said the Government is in “dialogue” with the funeral industry after The Telegraph reported calls for it to be regulated.