Angus has paid out an average of more than £10,000 per annum for the last six years to fund so-called pauper’s funerals in a situation costing councils huge sums annually.
Against a background of rising funeral costs, the authority has funded burials or cremations for nearly 50 people who had not made their own arrangements and had no means of paying.
The figure is well ahead of the total laid out by both Dundee City and Aberdeenshire Councils, but an MSP has said the growing scale of the problem and the bills cash-strapped authorities are having to bear underlines the importance of personal funeral planning.
Research by the Scottish Conservatives found burials under the National Assistance Act cost Angus £66,886.46 for 48 funerals in the past six years.
Dundee City Council paid out £23,084 for 82 burials, while 38 arrangements in Aberdeenshire cost £20,045.
North east region Conservative MSP Bill Bowman said the cost to the public purse will increase in line with the rising cost of funeral care.
Funeral costs have risen by 91% since 2004 and Dundee has the highest cremation cost in Scotland at £1,070.
Mr Bowman said: “It is a sad thing when someone dies and no one is there to make arrangements for them.
“Councils then have a solemn duty to employ undertakers to give the person a dignified send-off.
“Unfortunately, this is getting more expensive and councils are feeling the effects of reduced grant funding from the Scottish Government. It’s imperative to prepare now.
“There are schemes starting up in Dundee, for example the social enterprise being set up by Dundee Pensioners’ Forum, which mean that people can plan for their own funeral, in the knowledge they won’t add to an already difficult time for their family.”
Mr Bowman added: “Saying goodbye to a loved one is one of the most difficult things a person will have to do.
“And it is very sad that so many people are given a send-off without family. A dignified funeral or cremation is sometimes the last, most important public service they can offer.
“No one would want to leave their family with the prospect of a civil court case as local authorities attempt to recover costs.
“Even if there is no money to put aside for funeral care, reliable services such as the Citizens’ Advice Bureau can give advice on how to plan for the future.”
The National Assistance Act places a statutory duty on local authorities in the UK to make arrangements for ‘pauper’s funerals’ when a person has died in circumstances where the family is unable to be traced, or no funeral arrangements have been made for that person.
Public health funerals are no-frills services and do not include flowers, viewings, obituaries or transport for family members.
Burials may take place in an unmarked graved shared with other people. Councils have a responsibility for people who died within their boundary and may not take into account where the person had lived.