When a five star review means everything, it has to be real
When someone is arranging a funeral, they are navigating one of the hardest moments of their life. The last thing they need is to be misled by a review that was never written by a real customer.
It is a growing problem. The Competition and Markets Authority has launched an investigation into fake and manipulated online reviews after concerns that some businesses are fabricating them to gain an unfair advantage. For most industries that is a serious issue. In ours, it is something more.
Nick Douch, Managing Director of Douch Family Funeral Directors, has spoken out about the practice.
Most businesses are honest and their reviews come from genuine customers. But there are some who are simply making them up. That is dishonest, potentially fraudulent, and it disadvantages every business that plays by the rules.
In our sector this matters more than most. When someone is arranging a funeral they are going through one of the hardest times of their life. They need to know they can trust the business they are turning to.
Across our seven branches we have built up over a thousand genuine five star reviews and we are proud of every single one of them. Not one has been fabricated.
Nick Douch
Managing Director
Douch Family Funeral Directors is a member of both the National Association of Funeral Directors and Selected Independent Funeral Homes. Membership of Selected Independent Funeral Homes is earned, not given. Only funeral directors who demonstrate genuine excellence in care and service are accepted, and maintaining that membership requires those standards to be upheld every single day.
For families choosing a funeral director, accreditation from recognised professional bodies is one of the most reliable indicators of a business that can be trusted.
How to spot a fake review
The CMA has issued guidance to help consumers identify reviews that may not be genuine. Its advice is straightforward. Read the full review rather than relying on the star rating alone. Be wary of reviews that feel overly polished or perfectly crafted. And if something does not feel right, trust your instincts.
AI generated reviews are an increasing concern. If a review reads as though it has been written by a machine rather than a person, it may well have been.
At Douch Family Funeral Directors, every review we receive comes from a family we have had the privilege of serving. That matters to us and it should matter to anyone choosing a funeral director.
Douch Family Funeral Directors has been serving bereaved families across Dorset for over 110 years, with branches in Wimborne, Ferndown, Corfe Mullen, Parkstone, Blandford, Wareham and Swanage.
