Pearl Assurance's 1000-strong sales force could be facing redundancy, according to weekend press reports

AMP, the giant Australian insurance firm which owns Pearl, has been holding a review of its UK operations since October and is expected to spell out its conclusions by mid-week.

All 7,000 UK staff will reportedly be invited to meetings early this week to hear details of the review, which is thought likely to be published on Tuesday or Wednesday.

No part of AMP's UK operations is expected to escape cutbacks, but insiders say Pearl will bear the brunt of the reductions, the Mail on Sunday reported.

Shake-up

The 1,000 direct sales force employed by Peterborough-based Pearl Assurance is thought to be most vulnerable.

Many insurers have cut back on door-to-door sales in recent years, shifting resources towards internet sales with backup from staff in telephone call centres.

Though an AMP spokesman dismissed press reports of job cuts as "speculation", he confirmed "We do not believe the sales force in its present format is operable", the Scotsman newspaper reported.

AMP's UK operations reportedly account for about 60% of its business.

AMP's other UK businesses include insurance firms London Life and National Provident, as well as fund managers and financial advisors and a 50% stake in Virgin Money.

Troubles in the UK business drove down the value of Sydney-listed AMP's shares by 40% between March and October this year.

Life line

AMP had to bail out Pearl's life assurance business with an injection of �500m in September to meet the UK's solvency rules.

AMP has already said it will write off nearly half a billion pounds (A$1.2bn; �428m; $672m) from the value of its assets this year, mainly from its troubled British operations.

AMP has also announced 1,200 jobs cuts in Australia this year.

The UK financial services industry is undergoing a shake-up as firms struggle to adapt to a changing market.

The giant Prudential insurance firm and the Britannia Building Society have both axed their direct sales forces.

Many banks have closed smaller branches, and two of the UK's big three building societies, the Britannia Building Society and the Yorkshire Building Society, have decided to share their branches and serve each others' customers.