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Funeral directors seeking a tasteful alternative to the traditional hearse have found the perfect answer in the Mercedes Vito van.
Reading-based Binz UK supplies custom-built vehicles for use by funeral directors and mortuaries nationwide. In the last year the family firm has bought nine Vitos from Mercedes-Benz dealer Pentagon, of Andover.
The Long-bodied vans – most of which are used by funeral directors to transport coffins to funerals and mortuaries – boast high specifications, which include air conditioning, parking sensors and alloy wheels.
Binz UK fits each with a custom built ‘rise and fall’ hydraulic deck that allows a coffin to be loaded into the van directly from a trolley.
Sales and Marketing Director Kevin Smith explains: “Funeral directors are increasingly looking to invest in vehicles which are larger, and have a higher payload, than the traditional hearse.
“And they are doing so because the size and weight of the deceased people they have to carry is rising. This is an inevitable result of the growing number of obesity cases in Britain.”
The company’s latest Vito 115CDI is now being used as a demonstration unit. It features glass panels, internal blinds and has a burr walnut deck with polished fittings.
“Customers can put the van through its paces and see at first hand what it can do on day-to-day basis,” says Mr Smith.
The firm is currently building two Vitos at Reading for clients and has placed an order for another.
Binz UK is owned and operated by the Smith family. It has supplied high quality vehicles to funeral directors throughout the UK and Ireland for the past 20 years.
The firm became the UK arm of German company Binz in 1995 and began selling Mercedes-based products four years ago, after switching from a Swedish manufacturer. As well as Vitos, it retails Mercedes E-Class hearses and limousines built on a special production line in Germany.
Mr Smith continues: “Our own family ethos, coupled with our use of Mercedes-Benz chassis, allows us to provide vehicles of the highest quality and value for money, to the discerning funeral director.” |
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