End of the line for old Norwich Union

Jun 7 2008 by Barry Turnbull, Liverpool Daily Post

End of the line for old Norwich Union

INSURANCE giant Norwich Union is closing a Liverpool city centre office with the loss of 250 jobs in a nationwide restructuring programme.

The insurer plans to streamline its operations with a total loss of 1,800 employees over the next two years.

Three years ago 321 employees in Liverpool were cut adrift when call centre operations were switched to India.

Although the Moorfields office will close, some staff will transfer to its other site in nearby Water Street where 100 will remain.

The latest news is a blow to the city's aspirations to grow its financial services sector which provides more than one in 10 jobs.

A company spokesman said: “We hope to minimise the number of compulsory redundancies over the next two years.There may be opportunities for some staff to move to Stretford in Manchester, for instance.”

The restructuring of the company will affect 22 offices and will result in the number of products being reduced from 70 to 20.

The bulk of its insurance business will now operate from seven centres based in Norwich, Perth, Bishopbriggs, Stretford, Manchester, Leicester and Southend.

The move means the 200-year-old Norwich Union name will disappear to be replaced by the group brand Aviva.

Igal Mayer, chief executive of Norwich Union Insurance, said: “We are a very strong business that has grown over the years into a complex organisation.

“We want to deliver excellent, consistent and reliable customer service with market leading efficiency. To achieve this we will need to fundamentally simplify our business, consolidating our expertise into seven insurance centres of the future in the UK.

“This is a transformation that will take place over the next two years and will provide our employees with the products, processes and technology to give our customers and business partners excellent service, right the first time, every time.”

Norwich Union Insurance currently has offices in 52 towns and cities in the UK, 22 of which will be affected by these changes. In some cases specific buildings will close, with staff moving into smaller accommodation in the same towns and cities.

Union leaders said the plans were “devastating”.

barryturnbull