Stone-Safe, the Sussex company that makes safety bases for memorials, is offering a 30-year, insurance-backed guarantee on its products.

The difficulty of getting insurance companies to provide 30-year cover on memorials has been one of NAMM\'s arguments against the requirement for term guarantees on memorials. After consulting a barrister it was agreed at NAMM\'s AGM last year that a NAMM \'stance letter\' should be written expressing the view that the requirement for term guarantees is illegal. Cemetery authorities presented with the letter seem to be backing down from the requirement and NAMM are in the late stages of negotiation with the ICCM, the organisation that represents cemetery authorities, to replace term guarantees - and some councils have been pushing the guarantee requirement up to 50 years - with \'best practice\' warranties.

Even so, there are authorities still requiring 30-year (or longer) guarantees from memorial masons before they will allow memorials to be erected in their cemeteries and the Stone-Safe insurance-backed guarantee will make it easier for masons to feel comfortable about offering those assurances. Even if term guarantees are not required, says Anton Matthews who set up Stone-Safe after developing his safety base for memorials, the insurance-backed guarantee he is offering on his basis will still have a comfort factor for masons to know that the base they have used is safe and insured against failure for 30 years.

Stone-Safe bases, which cost £39.95, are also micro-chipped so that authorites can check that a Stone-Safe base has been used and is, therefore, insured.

Pembrokeshire council has adopted Stone-Safe bases for its cemeteries and is installing them itself for masons to use. Other cemetery authorities have shown an interest in the product, says Anton.