Co-operative Insurance Society (CIS) is to close the remaining seven...

Co-operative Insurance Society (CIS) is to close the remaining seven of its smallest general insurance claims offices as part of its new claims model.

The closures are in addition to the seven office closures proposed in December 2004, affecting 170 staff.

The offices affected in the latest set of closures are those in Watford, Chorley, Leeds, Manchester, Bristol, Southampton and Glasgow

The company said the closure will not reduce the total workforce any further, as new jobs will be created in the remaining offices.

CIS said it would create a new claims contact centre in Manchester, which will capture all initial claims enquiries, fully handle simple claims and pass more complex claims through to the specialised back office teams. It will also create a new claims Support Centre network with specialised claims handlers in dedicated teams based in Bury St Edmunds, Stoke, Nottingham and Rugby

CIS chief executive Paul Hewitt, said: “CIS already enjoys an excellent claims handling reputation and these proposals will ensure that we continue to provide a best of breed and fair claims service to all of our customers in the future.

“The decision taken to close our smaller offices is a reflection on the model we require going forwards for larger, more specialist teams. We certainly hope that a large number of staff will re-deploy to the new centres.”

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