Motor repair management company to create over 100 jobs through office acquisition
A motor repair management company based in Hull is to create more than 100 jobs after taking over part of a national brand.
Vizion Network has safeguarded more than 40 jobs after completing the acquisition of the former NFU Mutual claims centre in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire.
Vizion, which already employs around 100 people at its headquarters at The Deep Business Centre, expects to create more than 100 new jobs at the new office during this year.
Chris McKie, the company’s managing director, said: “At the moment we have 42 people in Wellingborough using about 20% of the building’s capacity. We expect our team there to increase to about 150 by the end of this year. There is gradual recruitment now and there are conversations going on about how quickly that will progress.”
NFU Mutual announced in October that it would close two of its regional service centres – Cardiff and Wellingborough – as it consolidated its operation.
Vizion Network saw the opportunity to continue an expansion programme which has seen the company grow from one member of staff in 2009 to become the biggest tenant at The Deep.
Freya Cross, business and corporate manager at The Deep, said: “Vizion Network’s expansion is great news for the people in Wellingborough who have kept their jobs as a result of the acquisition and for the people in Hull who have helped to build the business.
“Our mission at The Deep Business Centre is to help our tenants become established and then to grow, and Vizion is a spectacular example of what can be achieved. They started with one person in an office of 250 square feet here and they now have two offices, 100 people and 5,000 sq ft. The latest move underlines their status as a major player in the motor repair industry.”
McKie said the Wellingborough office of 15,000 sq ft over three floors will help Vizion Network expand in the midlands and the south with investment in new services and technology.
He said: “Hull will be our primary call centre but the Wellingborough office will support our growth forecast of 18 per cent this year and will also help us introduce additional services including providing replacement vehicles and providing additional services for customers with claims arising from the total loss of their vehicle.
“We already provide a 24/7 service for recovery of stranded vehicles and we plan to do the same with other services. Wellingborough will also be the hub for web-based and app-driven features such as registering claims and transmitting images, helping us to provide drivers with a seamless and less frictional service.”
The total annual number of claims received by Vizion Network has climbed from 78,210 in 2014 to 221,000 in 2016 as the company has struck partnerships with household-name insurers including Aviva, Allianz, AXA, LV, NFU Mutual and Markerstudy, with a client base of manufacturers which includes BMW, Ford, Jaguar, Land Rover, Renault, Subaru, Volvo and VW Group. The company expects to process 265,000 repairs this year.
McKie added: “We have got where we are as a result of ethical, honest and transparent trading, delivering on our promises and providing services which enable our customers to interact rapidly and repeatedly with their customers to the highest standards.
“That helps our clients increase their business and others within the industry are encouraged to collaborate with us, whether they are insurers, vehicle manufacturers, brokers or fleets.”
