In regulation 7 of the principal Regulations (entitlement to funeral expenses) —
(a) for sub-paragraph (1)(b) there shall be substituted the following sub-paragraph—
(b) the claimant (in this Part of these Regulations referred to as “the responsible person”) accepts responsibility for the costs of a funeral and —
(i) the responsible person was the partner of the deceased; or
(ii) where the responsible person or that person’s partner was a close relative of the deceased, it is reasonable for the responsible person to accept responsibility for those costs and there is no other person who was equally or more closely related to the deceased whom, on comparing that other person’s income and capital with that of the responsible person and taking account of the nature and extent of that other person’s contact with the deceased, it is reasonable to expect to meet those costs; or
(iii) where neither head (i) nor (ii) applies, it is reasonable in view of the extent of the responsible person’s or partner’s acquaintanceship with the deceased for that person to accept responsibility for those costs; and
(b) in paragraph (2) for the words “responsible member” each time they appear there shall be substituted the words “responsible person”.