A funeral director says figures which say Watford is one of the most expensive places to hold a funeral are not all black-and-white.

Research from data comparison website Beyond suggests funeral costs in the town are at an average of £5,814 – nudging London into second place at £5,749.

But Adam Ginder, who runs MK Ginder and Sons, which has a number of chains in the area, say the figures do not provide enough information.

The 33-year-old says the news has left people feeling concerned they may not be able to afford to bury their loved ones when the time comes.

He said: “This upsets me because it’s gone to national press. There are many things that can skew the figures – it’s all down to what type of funeral you have, that's down to family choice.

“It depends what they are comparing the figures to. Are they comparing apples for apples?

“Different things have different costs.”

He says his firm charges around £3,900 for a funeral with flowers and a limousine, although it does depend on the type of flowers.

Simple funerals, previously known as a pauper’s funeral, will always be cheaper.

Other factors can also affect the cost, including the type of casket, the type of ceremony and the type of minister.

The figures may also have considered the cost of dying – such as solicitor fees – as opposed to the cost of a funeral itself.

They do, however, say that independent funeral directors across the UK seem to have dropped their fees in the last year.

Despite this, the Co-op Funeralcare, one of the largest chains in the country, “does not recognise” these figures.

A spokesman said: “Over recent years, we have taken a number of steps to lead the way in tackling funeral affordability.

"We conduct almost 100,000 funerals every year, and our average funeral cost including third party fees is significantly lower than the figures quoted.

"Furthermore, following a price reduction in our most affordable funeral option over two years ago, we have since held our prices at the same level.

"We have also introduced a new lower priced choice funeral option this year, which is priced at £1,395, including third party costs.”

James Dunn, co-founder of Beyond, which carried out the study, said: “It looks like a football league but this is one table you don’t want to be topping.

“A lack of transparency in the funeral market is what’s fuelling price rises, particularly among the big chains.

“Death means big business, with half a million Brits dying every year, but a disinclination to shop around is resulting in mourners, who are often vulnerable, paying over the odds.”