Bulk of Drive Assist job losses fall on Tamworth - administrators

Failed credit hire company Drive Assist’s two Tamworth sites will be hardest hit by the first round of redundancies, the firm’s administrators say.

Three partners of restructuring firm Zolfo Cooper were appointed joint administrators of Drive Assist on Monday after the loss of a major client put the credit hire company under financial strain.

In an update released today, the administrator said that 224 of the first round of 259 job losses, which were effective immediately, would fall on Drive Assist’s two Tamworth sites. Drive Assist is headquartered in Tamworth but has operations in 14 other UK locations.

Drive Assist employed 640 people in total.

Zolfo Cooper said in the update that it recognised the impact the Tamworth redundancies have had on the local area. The administrator said it has been in close consultation with Job Centre Plus and the Member of Parliament for Tamworth, Christopher Pincher, to ensure support is readily available for those affected.

Zolfo Cooper partner Ryan Grant, one of Drive Assist’s three administrators, said: “We appreciate that this is a difficult and uncertain time for those affected and are working closely with Job Centre Plus and Christopher Pincher, MP for Tamworth, to provide assistance to both those employees who have been made redundant and those who remain employed by Drive Assist.”

Pincher added: “There is never a good time to lose your job but job losses just before Christmas create even more heartache and anxiety.I will work with Jobcentre Plus, Tamworth Borough Council, Staffordshire County Council and Zolfo Cooper to give staff the fullest possible information and to help people who are made redundant to get back into work as quickly as possible.”