Hull funeral home inquiry: Legacy 'racked up nearly £55k of council debt'

Thirty-five bodies and a quantity of ashes were removed by police from Legacy's site

A funeral company at the centre of a police inquiry allegedly racked up nearly £55,000 of council debt.

Legacy Independent Funeral Directors owed two local authorities in Hull and East Yorkshire money for unpaid charges including cremation and burial fees, the BBC understands.

Two people are on bail after a police inquiry into the company began on 6 March following a report of "concern for care of the deceased".

Legacy has been contacted for comment.

Few details about the police investigation have been revealed but 35 bodies were removed from the firm's Hessle Road premises and taken to another mortuary. Their families have been contacted, Humberside Police had said.

The force said a specialist team of officers was also examining a quantity of ashes recovered from this site.

Floral tributes and candles outside the Hessle Road premises

Local authorities in Hull and East Yorkshire said they were trying to recover the debt.

In a statement, Hull City Council said Legacy's debt "totals £51,508.46 [and] relates to unpaid fees and charges, including cremation fees".

"We are currently exploring options to recoup any monies owed to the authority following the company's compulsory strike-off notice, which was issued last week," it said.

An East Riding of Yorkshire Council (ERYC) spokesperson said: "There is a £2,000 debit owed by Legacy to ERYC for burials from some time ago.

"Our legal department has been chasing it."

According to Companies House records, Legacy, which was established in 2010, has been given formal notice on several occasions that it would be struck off.

Between 4 January 2022 and 12 March 2024 the company was issued five First Gazette notices or public warnings for "compulsory strike-off action", meaning the company was in the process of being removed from the register and would no longer legally exist.

But on four occasions Legacy was given a reprieve to have the strike-off discontinued.

On Monday, the fifth compulsory strike-off action was "temporarily suspended" because the registrar received an "objection".

Humberside Police set up dedicated helpline numbers, which remain open

Humberside Police said it had received more than 1,500 calls from people who had used the company and were concerned about their loved ones' remains.

Officers cordoned off three sites after the force received a report on 6 March of concerns "in relation to the storage and management and processes of the deceased people within those premises".

Cordons have since been lifted at Legacy's premises in Hessle Road and Anlaby Road in Hull, and Beckside in Beverley.

A "scene guard" was in place at the Hessle Road branch last week but has recently been removed.

A 46-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman were arrested on suspicion of prevention of a lawful and decent burial, fraud by false representation and fraud by abuse of position. They have since been released on bail while police inquiries continue.

The force said its dedicated helpline numbers remain open.

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