‘Like a horror film’ for Leeds family’s grief as mum’s coffin opens during funeral

A grieving family in Leeds have claimed their mum’s funeral was a disaster from start to finish – and even claim the coffin lid started to open during the ‘horrific’ ceremony.

Arlene Paul, of Little London, criticized the service her family received from Gooding Funeral Services for the funeral of her mother, Edith Elvira Paul, who died aged 84. On December 15, 2023, Arlene’s brother met with Gooding Funeral Services to discuss them. mum’s funeral and were initially told they had to pay £3,000 upfront to arrange everything.

The family did so and soon met with the funeral home again a few days later. They say no information was given to the church or recorded by the home and so the family had to go back over the details, delaying the progress of the funeral and the removal of Edith’s body, the family claims. Unfortunately, things got worse.

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Arlene said, “When my brother and sisters went up to see my mother in the chapel of rest, when they came in, my mother wasn’t even dressed. He had water running down his nose and ears and he wasn’t. even presented.”

The family claimed they had not been informed of this beforehand and were allowed to enter. Arlene added: “Obviously my sister was just terrified, my mum wasn’t even dressed or embalmed or anything and he (the funeral director) hadn’t even been warned.

“Then when my brother went to see him he said ‘you’ve got to wait until they’re in a coffin and you’ve embalmed them.’ So he said “well why did you let us in the room when you knew my mother wasn’t embalmed? The next time they came, the same thing happened, so no adjustments were made.”

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On the day of the funeral, the car that was being used to move Edith’s body broke down on the street and things got worse a few hours later, Arlene explained. She said: “Then going up to the funeral, the coffin was being opened as my mum was going to be buried.

“I said ‘the coffin opens’ and the man came and adjusted it, but the horror of all the people who were there was absolutely terrible. It was like living a horror movie.” She added: “Then he says, ‘we wish you well’ – have you ever seen a coffin open in front of you while your mother is being laid to rest?”

Arlene says the funeral home said they would give them their money back for the car, but says that doesn’t make up for the way they treated her mother. One of the worst parts was the delayed embalming, which meant the family, who had planned to have an open casket for mourners, had to change that plan because of how their mother’s appearance had changed.

Arlene said: “They took £3,000 from us and you were more concerned about that than our mother’s dignity.”

“Our reputation is essential to us”

Gooding Funeral Services said they believed they had resolved the matter with the family in February and said: “As an independent family funeral service with strong links to our community, our reputation is essential to us.

“Our business is run to the highest professional standards, as reflected in our 5/5 rating on Funeral Guide, our many positive reviews on Google and our online testimonials. We are members of the National Funeral Directors Association and are recommended by both the Good Funeral Guide and the Natural Death Center.

“When we fall short of the high standards we have set for ourselves, we are proactive and prompt in resolving the situation in a way that is satisfactory to our customer.

“We continue to offer our family our deepest and most sincere condolences in this case. Losing a parent is always difficult and our thoughts remain with them at this time.”