Admiral, Wales' only FTSE 100 company, has confirmed plans to cut around 500 roles from its UK insurance business. The Cardiff-headquartered group has started a 45-day collective consultation period with affected staff.
The restructuring will reduce headcount at the UK insurance business by 5%. It forms part of £100m in cost savings announced when the company published its 2025 financial results in March. Admiral said it is too early to say whether the staff reductions can be achieved voluntarily or whether compulsory redundancies will be needed.
It will offer enhanced redundancy packages to affected staff and other support measures, including up to £10,000 for those who decide to start their own businesses, along with mentoring support. Admiral said the move is designed to reduce complexities across the business. Its UK insurance business, which focuses mainly on vehicle insurance but also includes lines such as travel and pet, is trading strongly.
The insurer stressed that while it uses AI, adopting the technology is not the reason for what is its largest ever redundancy round. It added that the transformation programme is “designed to create a simpler, faster and more effective business that is easier for customers to deal with and better prepared for the future.”
Its UK business employs nearly 10,000 people. Of those, 6,700 are based in Cardiff and just under 2,000 at its Swansea office. It also has a presence in Peterborough following its acquisition of insurer More Than.
Chief executive of Admiral UK Insurance, Alistair Hargreaves, said: “We are making changes to Admiral’s UK Insurance business to ensure we have the right structure, skills and ways of working to meet evolving customer needs. These changes are aimed at making us faster and more efficient so we can continue to deliver great customer outcomes.
“Unfortunately, these proposed changes could result in a number of role reductions if implemented. We recognise this will be a difficult time for affected colleagues and our immediate priority is to support those impacted colleagues, including exploring redeployment opportunities wherever possible. Alongside enhanced redundancy terms, we are also making a significant investment in meaningful support to help colleagues consider future options.”
Other support measures include up to £5,000 for professional qualifications, accredited training and further education. Staff undertaking approved retraining can apply to work part-time for up to 12 months while gaining new qualifications or developing skills for a new profession. It is also working with outplacement specialist LHH to provide career coaching, job search support, CV and interview preparation, networking guidance and career transition expertise.
For its 2025 financial year, reported in March, Admiral posted a 16% rise in pre-tax profit to £957.9m. Group turnover was £5.9bn, down 1% on 2024. On the back of the results, some 13,000 staff received £1,800 in free shares. Admiral also has businesses in France, Italy and Spain.
