According to the insurance giant, the new operating model is designed to improve the company’s service and drive growth.

The company also says that this next phase will continue the transformation announced in October 2007 and will involve the redesign of the operations function, simplification of processes, improvements in customer services and the consolidation of expertise into seven modern insurance centers of excellence managing customer services, sales, claims and back office administration.

Norwich Union also pointed out that these centres had been selected as the “best equipped to meet our future business needs in terms of skills base and availability, accommodation, access, IT and infrastructure”.

However, the reorganisation will mean Norwich Union Insurance withdrawing from more than a dozen centres including Ipswich - where the group is understood to employ around 60 people in total - Dundee, Glasgow, Leeds, Sheffield, Liverpool, Cheadle, Birmingham, Bristol, Southampton, Basildon, Exeter and Worthing.

“This will happen carefully over the next two years as NUI aims to minimise customer disruption and be as supportive as possible for its employees as they go through the transformation,” the company said.

It further explains that over the next two years as the transformation program is implemented, there will be significant changes for some of the sites in which Norwich Union Insurance has offices as work currently carried out across widespread locations will be brought together in the seven new centers of excellence based in Norwich, Perth, Bishopbriggs, Stretford, Manchester, Leicester and Southend.

Igal Mayer, chief executive of Norwich Union Insurance, said: "This is a transformation that will take place over the next two years and will provide our employees with the products, processes and technology to give our customers and business partners excellent service, right the first time, every time."

Aviva is pulling out operations staff from Dundee, Glasgow city centre, Leeds, Sheffield, Liverpool, Cheadle, Birmingham, Bristol, Southampton, Basildon, Ipswich, Exeter and Worthing over the next two years.

Other parts of Aviva, including Norwich Union Life, will retain a presence in all of those towns and cities. The company said a number of mergers and acquisitions, dating back to the merger with CGU, had left its Norwich Union Insurance operations with too many products, processes, systems and locations.

The company employs 30,000 people in the UK, with around 18,000 staff working in general insurance in 52 towns and cities in the UK.