Aviva is inviting Norwich Union with-profits policyholders to vote on the proposed reattribution of surplus funds. Negotiations over the reattribution have dragged on for well over a year because of a dispute over the proportion of the surplus that should be paid to shareholders. In July 2008, Aviva announced that it was prepared to pay [...]
Aviva has erased its Norwich Union brand, which has disappeared from today. The name, which first appeared in 1797 and has been synonymous with general insurance in the UK for decades, has cost its parent company millions to ditch given a £9 million advertising campaign and additional in-house costs. Aviva shocked the insurance world with [...]
Norwich Union (NU) with-profits policyholders who have been waiting patiently for news of the reattribution of surplus funds will be disappointed to learn that parent company, Aviva, has fixed the total payout at £400 million rather than the £1 billion promised earlier. In July of last year, Aviva announced that it was prepared to pay [...]
Following the abysmal figures contained in the Budget, Norwich Union, shortly to become Aviva, has stated its concern that by the end of the year unemployment could fuel a 50% rise in household burglary. Home Office statistics give the number of burglaries in 2008 as 280,000 and if Norwich Union’s fears are realised then 420,000 [...]
The chief executive of Norwich Union (NU) General Insurance has apologised for sending “conflicting messages” over job cuts. In a recent interview with Professional Broking magazine, Igal Mayer indicated that there would be no redundancies announced during the remainder of this year. However, last week, NU owner Aviva said it is proposing to cut 1,100 [...]
The BBC has reported that Aviva is proposing to cut 1,100 UK jobs this year and at the same time “close” 590 contract positions, which will go over the next few months. Trade union, Unite, expects staff at the group’s York and Norwich offices to be in the front line, although job losses at other [...]
Norwich Union (NU) has published its critical illness (CI) statistics for last year. The insurer settled 1,625 CI claims during 2008, totalling almost £121 million, a rise of 14% on a year earlier. A further £216 million was paid to families who were either bereaved or had a family member diagnosed with a terminal illness. [...]
Eighty six percent of properties in the UK are ‘significantly underinsured’, according to recent research by Norwich Union. The home insurance provider surveyed 128 homes, and found £314 million of under-insured property. Most properties had not undergone a professional valuation for insurance purposes, Norwich Union said. It added that professional valuations are essential for adequate [...]
Aviva has set up a new broker initiative that it says can provide up to 3,000 local independent brokers with unique access to a range of specifically tailored packages and services. Broker Independence Group is available to all local independent brokers with Norwich Union accounts of less than £800,000 premium. It comprises a dedicated team [...]
Aviva has agreed a 10-year £700 million contract with EDS, which has been hired to run data services for the insurer. EDS, which is part of the HP group, will operate two data centres located in Norwich providing services for Aviva’s businesses in the UK, France, Ireland and India. According to the insurer’s UK general [...]
Aviva has reported an 11% increase in life and pension sales in 2008, to £36 billion, with growth driven by UK and North American markets. Life and pension sales in the UK hit £11.9 billion last year, while for Europe this category of sales rose 8%, to £17 billion. In a trading update, Aviva also [...]
Norwich Union (NU) policyholders expecting a windfall from the reattribution of the insurers’ with-profits fund surplus may be disappointed. In July of last year NU’s parent company, Aviva, announced that it was prepared to pay an average £1,000 per policy to around 700,000 customers who had invested in GCNU Life or CULAC with-profits funds before [...]
Investors in Norwich Union’s (NU) unit-linked life and pensions’ property fund may not be able to redeem their cash for up to six months. The insurer is limiting withdrawals, although savers whose policies are due to mature during the period and those who receive regular payments from the fund are not affected, along with anyone [...]
Aviva-owned Norwich Union (NU) has cut bonuses on its with-profits policies. Effective 1st January, 2.3 million policyholders will receive payouts worth up to 15% less than a year earlier. As a result, a 25-year Norwich Union endowment mortgage costing £50 per months is worth £42,322, compared to £45,911 at the beginning of 2008. In the [...]
Norwich Union (NU) has issued an update on its promise to return £40 million of unclaimed assets to 40,000 customers, who have forgotten about their investments with the insurer. So far NU has returned £10 million to elusive policyholders with the help of Assets Reunited, which it has appointed to do the tracing. The company’s [...]
To transform itself into a globally recognisable brand, Norwich Union is changing its name to Aviva, and it is paying £9 million for the privilege. A-list celebrities have been recruited to headline the TV-ad driven rebranding campaign, which will launch on Boxing Day. Bruce Willis, Ringo Starr and Elle Macpherson are among the line up [...]
Norwich Union (NU) is predicting that the UK’s equity release market will thrive during the recession. The group sees the impact of the current economic turmoil on savings, a general lack of retirement funding and the Government’s growing emphasis on self-funded retirement as the main drivers in the market. The insurer expects High Street banks [...]
Motor insurance giant Norwich Union has warned that car insurance fraud is on the rise because of the credit crunch. Research by the insurer found motorists trying to reduce premiums by declaring false information to their insurance firm when taking out a policy. However, Norwich Union warned that insurance granted on false premises is invalid, [...]
Aviva, the world’s fifth largest insurer, has announced plans to launch the UK’s biggest ever financial services rebranding campaign in a bid to shed it’s Norwich Union brand name. The £9 million advertising offensive will start Boxing Day with the aim of completing the rebrand by June 2009. TV adverts will feature celebrities who have [...]
