Branch closures threaten 510 jobs at Cattles

by Gill Montia

Story link: Branch closures threaten 510 jobs at Cattles

Cattles has warned that jobs may go if it proceeds with plans to close branches of its Welcome Financial unit, as leases on premises expire.

The beleaguered sub-prime lender says 30 outlets could cease to exist with the loss of 510 sales and support roles.

In July, the firm completed a clear out of its board room following an independent review of its internal accounting controls.

The review revealed a breakdown in controls resulting in the incorrect application of impairment policies at Welcome Financial.

The lender had already warned in April that it could need to make a provision of £850 million to cover bad debts, £700 million of which related to past accounting periods.

So far this year, the group has cut around 1,000 jobs, or 20% of its workforce, in the expectation that volumes at Welcome Financial will decline by up to 75% in 2009.

The division has around 500,000 non-standard customers and provides direct repayment loans from 183 branches across the UK.