Funeral Partners introduces electric hearses into fleet

Funeral Partners has revealed it has expanded its fleet with the introduction of three new electric hearses which are due to be trialled in Birmingham, Torquay and Belfast.

The Nissan LEAF hearse will debut at W H Painter Funeral Directors in Yardley, James Brown and Sons Funeral Directors in Belfast, and Torbay and District Funeral Service in Torquay.

Looking ahead, Funeral Partners aims to have an electric vehicle based in every region of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland for branches to use.  

Mark Potts, head of operational support, has been overseeing the launch in a bid to provide families with more choice for eco funerals.

The electric hearses will also reportedly give Funeral Partners’ funeral homes the opportunity to install charging stations and benefit from the various government grants available.

Additionally, Funeral Partners has invested £3m in reducing the age profile of its more than 400 petrol and diesel vehicles to increase fuel efficiency and reduce carbon emissions across the last two years on fleets.

Potts said: “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.

“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.”