Funeral Home's Yelp Page Flooded With Reviews From People Who Are Clearly Not the Deceased

Peaceful Passages Funeral Home has requested Yelp investigate a surge of reviews that staff say misrepresent the customer experience, as every review was written by someone who attended a funeral rather than the person for whom the funeral was held. 'We have 847 reviews and not a single one is from an actual client,' said director Marcus Repose. 'They're all from guests. That's like reviewing a hospital based on the waiting room magazines.' The reviews, while mostly positive, focus on aspects of the experience that Repose considers tangential to the core service. 'Beautiful venue, but the parking was tight — three stars,' reads one. Another states: 'Lovely service. The egg salad sandwiches at the reception were outstanding. Would return.' A particularly detailed five-star review reads: 'The lighting was superb. The deceased looked better than I've ever seen him, and I include the years when he was alive. The organist played Abide With Me without a single error. My only complaint is that the tissues in row six were single-ply. For the prices they charge, I expect at least double-ply.' Repose has attempted to have the reviews recategorized. 'These are reviews of our hospitality, not our mortuary services,' he argued in a letter to Yelp. 'The actual clients cannot leave reviews. That is the fundamental nature of our business. We would appreciate if Yelp acknowledged this structural limitation.' Yelp has declined to intervene, noting that 'all reviews reflect genuine consumer experiences.' Repose has since hired a hospitality consultant to upgrade the finger sandwiches and has switched to triple-ply tissues. 'If they're going to review the peripherals,' he said, 'then the peripherals will be impeccable.'