BBCMargaret and David Fee spend thousands of pounds on pre-paid funeral plans to ease the trauma of loved ones when they die.
But in 2022, they were among 46,000 people who found Safe Hands Plans Ltd – the company they trusted to arrange funerals – had collapsed.
Two years on, and as fraud investigations continue to probe the company’s affairs, Margaret and David are no closer to getting their money back, or finding the answers they demand about what went wrong.
And with the new government in place, consumer groups are calling on ministers to launch a public inquiry into dormant funeral companies.
Margaret – a former bereavement service officer with the NHS – said the scheme was paid for from David’s pension pot.
He said he only worked part-time, so he had a “very small” pension pot.
The couple, both 78, are now retired and live in Ratby, Leicestershire.
They invested £2,745 each from David’s pension to pay for his funeral in 2015.
Safe Hands ensures the money is covered and protected, with all aspects of the funeral considered.
But seven years later, the company went into administration and with some money.
A funeral plan is designed to allow people to set aside money during their lifetime, to help their families pay for their funeral upon death.
Previously unregulated
The plan has become popular as funeral prices have risen, but there have been questions about the lack of protection if the provider fails.
From July 2022, providers will need approval to operate from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), providing greater protection for consumers.
Safe Hands was one of dozens of companies operating in the previously unregulated prepaid funeral sector, and it collapsed four months before the move was implemented.
The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) opened an investigation, which is ongoing, into Safe Hands in October 2023.
As customers who bought directly through Safe Hands, Margaret and David were offered the chance to pay half the amount again to upgrade to a full plan with Dignity or the Co-op.
Margaret and David – a former electrical maintenance engineer – took this offer, paying for one plan up front using money from David’s pension fund, and the second in a monthly payment plan, both with Dignity.
He said the company was collapsing in premiums every month and that it was in a vulnerable financial position.
“We never thought we would be in this position to pay something every month again. We thought we were comfortable. Now, we do not take into debt but there is nothing left. There is no money to treat,” said Margaret.
He believed his health had suffered.
David, speaking through tears as Margaret comforted him, said: “You can go in with a stomach ache and worry, and it will all add up.
“And sometimes you think, is it worth doing? But you have to.”
Gill Marshall, a retired grandmother of four, paid £4,000 for a Safe Hands funeral plan.
Her husband, Paul, died suddenly aged 57 while traveling in France in 2012.
The family did not have a plan, insurance or sufficient funds to pay for repatriation.
To bring her husband home and organize the funeral, Gill – from Grantham in Lincolnshire – had to borrow money, take out a government loan, and almost lose the family home in the process.
“It’s a very difficult time and I don’t want my children to be in that position,” she said.
So, for her funeral, Gill came up with the Safe Hands plan.
He didn’t give the matter another thought until a letter arrived on September 19, 2022, informing him that the company had gone into administration.
“You just lost it, didn’t you? Because the money was lost,” he said.
“You thought you had it organized, then not only did you not get a funeral plan, but you didn’t get the money to put into something else.”
The administrator for Safe Hands, FRP Advisory, declined to comment on the ongoing situation.
But it has issued four publicly available progress reports since taking over the administration of the company.
In the latest report from May, the administrators stated that they “continue to pursue claims”.
The report noted “substantial progress with the process of adjudicating claims submitted by plan holders”.
However, the company has not been able to return the money to Safe Hands customers.
Before the collapse of Safe Hands, there was no industry regulation as long as the money was kept in trust, which meant that it would be carefully handled by the account trustee.
But by July 2022, all prepaid funeral companies will have to obtain approval to operate from the FCA.
Safe Hands applied, but the company later withdrew the application. Unable to trade without regulation, the company went into administration in March 2022.
FRP advisers told BBC plan holders they were owed about £70.6m – and expected returns of between £8m and £10.9m.
There are no repayment requirements
The administrator’s progress document shows a series of financial transactions that took place before the collapse of Safe Hands.
Of the tens of millions owed, the documents show £45.1m of investments were made in the Cayman Islands – which are outside the UK’s jurisdiction.
In addition, in 2018, a loan of around £3.5m was received by the previous owner of the company, Malcolm David Milson. According to documents filed by Safe Hands on Companies House, it was issued without any repayment requirements.
The BBC has invited Mr Milson to comment on the payment, but he has not responded.
Lara Gee – financial expert and associate professor in accounting at the University of Nottingham – said that the company has a lot of time to manage its finances, to comply with regulations.
“In 2017, Safe Hands itself was part of the original group that launched the funeral care plan that came together to discuss the future of the industry and how it should be regulated,” he said.
“With that in mind, you would hope that they will see what the FCA can ask from them, they will make investments in line with the regulatory requirements so that they are ready, well ahead, as many other providers.”
Both former owners of Safe Hands – Mr Milson and Richard Philip Wells – were contacted about the company’s finances, but did not respond.
Consumer group Fairer Finance says the new government will now push for a public inquiry.
He said it warned the Finance, and the FCA, in a meeting back in 2017 about the financial situation with Safe Hands and the risk of collapse.
It believes that if the organization has taken action, significant losses for planholders could have been avoided.
The FCA said at the time, it had limited powers as Safe Hands was not regulated.
Meanwhile, a Treasury spokesman said: “Following concerns about the funeral plans market, we are making it illegal to sell pre-paid funeral plans without the consent of the Financial Conduct Authority – protecting 1.6 million customers and their families.”
In response to the ongoing investigation, the Serious Fraud Office told the BBC that “an active criminal investigation into alleged fraud” by Safe Hands and its parent company SHP Capital Holdings Limited is progressing.
The organization has not given any indication of how long the investigation will take, which is disappointing for those who lost money – like Margaret and David.
“I think they want to prosecute – tell the truth,” added Margaret.
“They have caused a lot of pain to a vulnerable age group.”
