Burial costs vary enormously, Groningen and Zuid-Holland are most expensive
The cost of being buried in the Netherlands varies enormously and there is no uniformity about what is covered in the price of a grave, according to research by funeral insurance company Monuta.
In Groningen, it costs €7,129 to rent a grave for 30 years. In Losser in Overijssel, by contrast, the fee is just €721 but for 20 years. In addition, some bills include maintenance, administration fees and the cost of placing a gravestone but others don’t. This makes it especially difficult to compare prices, Monuta said.
Local authorities should unify their fee structures so that relatives know exactly what to expect, the insurance company said. Some 40% of people in the Netherlands opt for burial, the rest for cremation.
The shortage of space in the Netherlands means graveyards are scarce – so most people tend to ‘rent’ a grave for 10 or 20 years. After that, unless the family pays for a new rental period, the remains will be cleared out and placed in a mass grave.
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