New prices: urn burial in Seefeld almost twice as expensive

Created: 06/23/2022, 07:05

By: Laura Forster

The cemetery on Lindenallee in Hechendorf is one of three cemeteries in the municipality of Seefeld.

Burials there will be more expensive as of next week.

© Andrea Jaksch

From July, the fees for burials in the municipality of Seefeld will change.

While burials are becoming cheaper, the bereaved will have to pay almost twice as much for urn burials in the future.

A development that not all local councils can understand.

Seefeld – It's not just the energy, fuel and food costs that are currently skyrocketing, in the municipality of Seefeld funerals will also be significantly more expensive from next month.

According to the administration, the executing company Zirngibl from Starnberg is forced to adjust its funeral prices due to general inflation.

Above all, the costs for urn burials in the Hechendorf cemeteries at the war memorial, on Lindenallee and Oberalting-Seefeld are increasing - from the current 245.14 euros to 422.45 euros in the future (burial) and from 224.91 euros to 385.56 euros (wall grave ).

Burials for adults are becoming a little cheaper: so far they cost 1080.52 euros, in the future 952 euros.

Lowering is becoming more expensive: 597.38 euros instead of the previous 315.35 euros.

According to the town hall, almost all other positions remain unchanged.

Starnberg funeral home adjusts prices to inflation

"We have been working with the Zirngibl funeral home for almost 25 years," said Mayor Klaus Kögel at the municipal council meeting on Tuesday.

"Unfortunately, the company terminated the 2017 contract in September 2020 in good time." The community was unable to find another undertaker for the three cemeteries quickly, which is why they negotiated with Zirngibl to retain the conditions that have been in effect since 2017 until June 30, 2022.

However, that agreement is now expiring and the company is looking to adjust funeral prices for another contract due to run until June 30, 2024.

"I can only shake my head when I see that an urn burial is twice as expensive and a burial is cheaper.

That's cheeky and a clean gamble, because the workload is significantly higher with a burial," criticized Ulrich Pirzer (FWG) and suggested that the municipality take over part of the burial offer itself with his garden center.

"It's not that simple," said managing director Fritz Cording.

"We are not happy with the situation either, but all tasks should be covered by one company."

Municipal councils would like timely recalculation and tendering

Brigitte Kelly of the registry office added that some communities, such as Inning, no longer have a mortician for their cemetery.

When asked what the prices look like in other municipalities, Kelly said: “Funerals in neighboring municipalities are still ten to 15 percent cheaper.

As soon as the old contracts expire, however, the municipalities will find themselves in the same situation.”

Petra Gum, like her parliamentary colleague Pirzer, was not satisfied with the administration's proposal.

"I really have to say that someone didn't do their homework and that's at the expense of the citizens.

The termination of the Zirngibl company was one and a half years ago.

Why didn't we get any more bids or put them out to public?" she asked.

"Ash on my head," Cording replied.

In addition to personnel changes in the town hall, a company with which the municipality was in talks to recalculate the cemetery fees for a public tender was responsible for the delays.

"Unfortunately, they let us down."

In the end, the municipal councils bit the bullet and voted unanimously for the new contract with the Zirngibl company.

"The most important thing is that burials can also be carried out in Seefeld in the future," said Mayor Kögel.

Christian Wagner (BVS) noted that this time the recalculation and the tender should be started in good time.

"Not that that will happen again." lf