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As the growth of the eco-aware consumer increases and moves across all industries, Funeral Partners is always looking at ways to reduce its own carbon emissions.
For funeral directors, nowhere are emissions more prevalent than in transport, which is why Funeral Partners is excited to expand its fleet with the introduction of brand-new electric hearses.
Mark Potts, Head of Operational Support, has been overseeing the exciting addition into the Funeral Partners fleet with three new vehicles due to be trialled in Birmingham, Torquay and Belfast.
He said: “We’re always looking at ways to reduce our carbon footprint while giving families more choices. The introduction of electric hearses achieves both and lays the foundations for a wider transition to electric vehicles as part of a five-year plan.”
The Nissan LEAF hearse will debut at W H Painter Funeral Directors in Yardley, James Brown & Sons Funeral Directors in Belfast and Torbay & District Funeral Service in Torquay. In the future, Funeral Partners aims to have an electric vehicle based in every region of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland for branches to use.
As well as giving families more choice for increasingly popular eco funerals, electric hearses will give Funeral Partners funeral homes the opportunity to install charging stations and benefit from the various government grants available.
Mark said: “I’ve already spoken to some funeral homes that are interested in the government’s Workplace Charging Scheme, which supports up-front costs associated with purchasing and installing electric vehicle charge points.”
Funeral Partners has also invested heavily in reducing the age profile of its more than 400 petrol and diesel vehicles to increase fuel efficiency and reduce carbon emissions by investing around £3mil across the last two years on fleets. Mark explained: “We’re taking a very targeted approach by focusing on vehicles with high mileage, such as our Mercedes Vito and Ford Torneo vans, to seek efficiencies and reduce the impact on the environment.”
Funeral Partners looks forward to receiving the delivery of the three Nissan LEAF hearse vehicles and getting some feedback from clients and the teams.