Revenues creep up at funeral firm

Revenue at funerals firm Dignity nudged up in the first quarter, helped by a higher death rate and a betterthan-expected take-up of premium services.

The under-pressure group, which has been embroiled in a price war, booked sales of £95.1 million in the 13 weeks to 30 March, up from £93.3m last year. Earnings were flat. The figures came as the absolute number of deaths increased by 8 per cent to 181,000.