Maximum of 130 jobs could go, says insurer
Up to 130 jobs could go at Chartis Insurance UK as the company looks to make operational changes and reduce expenses, Insurance Times can exclusively reveal.
The company reorganisation, which is across all lines of business, will take effect over the first half of this year.
But Chartis will be seeking to reallocate staff where possible to other parts of the business.
The UK arm of the US-based insurer, headed by managing director Nicolas Aubert (pictured above), broke the news to its employees on Monday citing the impact of tough economic environment as well as soft market conditions and low investment returns on results.
Announcing the move, the company said: “Against this background and given Chartis’ strong focus on underwriting discipline and expense management we are proposing a number of operational changes that will result in the business being better positioned for the future.
“In 2012 Chartis’ UK business is looking to reduce expenses from staff and non-staff related costs. As staff costs represent a significant proportion of overall expenses we anticipate that there will be a maximum of 130 redundancies. We are looking to limit the number of redundancies through the management of staff turnover and redeployment so the final number may be less.”
The proposed changes are based on a review of the company’s operations and its markets and it is currently consulting with its staff on a number of proposals to ensure its staffing levels are in line with the company’s operational capability.
Chartis has recently made a number of changes to its business mix, including its decision not to take on any new business in the the solicitors’ professional indemnity space, as reported in Insurance Times.
“The programme will result in the business being better positioned for the future and better able to achieve our vision of being the most valued insurer in the UK in our chosen markets by 2015,” the company said.
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