STAFF at the Salisbury headquarters of HPI have been told that their jobs are at risk and the call centre in the city will be closing by the end of the year.

The centre, which currently employs more than 90 staff, offers a car history checking service for the trade and private customers alike.

The proposals will merge HPI with its sister company within Solera UK, CAP Automotive.

An employee told the Journal that staff were called to a meeting midmorning to be told the work is to be transferred to the company’s other offices, including its Leeds base and that their jobs were at risk.

He said: “ We do not know yet quite what it means.

Some will be offered work, but it is at the other end of the country. The proposed date is November but we know no more than that. It is a complete shock.”

Neil Hodson, managing director of HPI, says: “This is clearly a difficult time for our Salisbury team and our number one priority is to consult with them and to explore ways of mitigating the impact on our team.

“Solera is committed to building a growing business and we want to retain highly-valued skills so we will examine all options for our staff.”