Riga cemetery chief says funeral industry has many grey areas and information leaks

Gints Zēla, head of the Cemetery Administration within the Riga City Council's Housing and Environment Department, discussed Latvia's funeral services industry on the TV24 programme "Uz līnijas". In his view, several areas of the sector still lack clear rules and sufficient supervision, which raises questions about fair competition and the handling of information.

A difficult situation for clients

Zēla noted that a person who has just lost a relative is not comparable to an ordinary customer who calmly weighs offers, prices and quality. In such a situation, he said, it is hard to judge objectively whether the service is of proper quality and scope, or whether one is being deceived.

For that reason, Zēla argued, how funeral companies obtain information about potential clients is especially important. He said the sector has long seen a struggle over integrity: how a provider reaches a client, how it learns about that person, and which methods it uses.

Hospitals and information leaks

The head of the Cemetery Administration recalled that national-level discussions have already been held about funeral providers being present in hospitals and about separating medical institutions from commercial client acquisition. He also mentioned publicly known cases in which officials were held accountable for allegedly passing information to funeral businesses.

According to Zēla, the municipality has also encountered "mysterious" leaks: a funeral provider learned the amount of the funeral allowance to be paid out before the municipality did. He said such cases raise questions not only about competition but also about the handling of personal data and sensitive information.

A broader problem

Zēla believes the issue cannot be reduced to a single company or an isolated case. He described the sector as one with many grey areas where much remains to be done to put everything in order.