This is the World of Funerals

Nearly 90,000 people die each year in Austria - and they should be buried with dignity. This is taken care of by 503 undertakers with nearly 1,600 employees - from consultation, to the collection of the body, to the funeral speakers. The industry generated around 285 million euros in revenue last year. On average, it is less than 3,300 euros that relatives pay to the undertaker - excluding external costs, such as for cremation, storage, or the funeral meal.

Decline in Businesses

However, the number of businesses is declining, as undertaker and federal guild master Martin Dobretsberger explained in an interview with the APA. In mixed businesses, such as those with carpentries, the effort for funerals often no longer pays off: This includes, for example, permanent availability or the accounting takeover of employees from one business to the funeral service. In addition, there are part-time workers or volunteers who contribute to the funeral. The undertaker must also comply with a number of laws and regulations. Disease control is probably the most important, but only one of many points. "An undertaker is probably the only profession in the healthcare sector that is not billed through health insurance," Dobretsberger noted. In Upper Austria, according to the federal guild master, about two-thirds of businesses are only part-time undertakers. Therefore, it is not surprising that there is a market concentration here.

Even if the undertaker's bill is comparatively moderate on average, the price range between funeral options is enormous: Just for the coffin, according to undertakers' offers, between 1,000 and 10,000 euros are due, while an urn costs a modest 60 to 200 euros. For the crematorium, between 150 and 600 euros should be calculated. For the funeral hall, 150 or nearly 900 euros can be charged, and the funeral speaker demands between 100 and 500 euros. But also, for example, the transfer of the body, the post-mortem examination, the burial, and the funeral meal are not free.

Not Only Burials

While for a burial, a total of 7,000 to 9,000 euros is to be expected, relatives spend on average around 4,000 to 6,000 euros for cremation. However, all costs are already covered here. Although there is, of course, room for upward adjustments. This affects the coffin as well as the funeral meal or the type of funeral.

Because the times when undertakers only offered classic burials are long gone - not least for cost reasons. Especially in rural areas, more and more people are opting for cremation. "When the whole town sees that a cremation can be conducted solemnly, many also choose it," said Dobretsberger. The standard cremation is, for example, available at Bestattung Wien from around 2,100 euros.

The costs for cremation are not yet included here. The costs for cremation in the 17 Austrian crematoria vary - and the prices also depend on whether they are operated with gas or electricity.

With the discount offers, the relatives take the urn home. Because in most federal states, it can be kept at home, provided there is the appropriate permission from the municipality, the magistrate, or the mayor. Only in Carinthia does the urn have no place within one's own four walls.

Cremation is also a prerequisite for a number of other burials, which can be quite expensive for the relatives. These include so-called "natural burials," although their share is only in the single-digit percentage range.

Tree and River Burial

Tree burial proves to be relatively inexpensive. In this case, the urn is buried at approved sites near a tree. But sea or river burial is also an option to bury the body without having to take care of the grave site further. In Austria, some sections of the Danube are available where water-soluble urns can be submerged. Those who wish can also combine the funeral service with a visit to Bratislava: Just before the Slovak capital, urns can also be sent on their journey towards the Black Sea. River burial is offered for just a few hundred euros more than cremation - in the cheapest version, however, no mourners are present at the deceased's last boat trip.

However, burials where the ashes are interred or scattered outside of cemeteries can become problematic for the environment, as the federal guild master explains. At temperatures between 700 and 1,100 degrees, chromium(VI) compounds form, which are water-soluble and considered extremely hazardous to health.

Sapphire, Ruby, Diamond

For those who hold the deceased dear and valuable, they can be transformed into a sapphire, ruby, or even diamond. Since the costs for this are quite high, the share of these burials is in the per mille range. For example, a burial offers this service starting at just under 6,000 euros. However, the costs for gemstone production are not yet included. The Swiss company Algordanza makes diamonds from ashes or hair. For around 3,500 Swiss francs (about 3,800 euros), a diamond with 0.3 carats is produced.

Rubies and sapphires are manufactured by the Austrian company Mevisto. The Upper Austrian company needs 50 grams - about three tablespoons - of ash, as an employee explained to the APA. The ash is processed with aluminum oxide as well as iron and titanium for a sapphire or with chromium for a ruby in a fusion process to create the desired gemstone. Depending on the composition of the ash, an individual color tone results. Prices start here for a half-carat at 2,360 euros, for 12 carats you have to reckon with 26,380 euros. The remaining ash can be kept at home or interred - for example, for ten years free of charge also at the "Stone of Eternity" in the cemetery in St. Martin in Linz.

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.