TROUBLED insurer Britannic Group is selling its mortgage lending subsidiary to Paragon for £18.7m.

Britannic is selling Britannic Money, based in Epsom, to specialist lender Paragon Group of Companies.

Paragon said it would seek substantial cost savings and said there would "undoubtedly" be job losses among Britannic's 250-strong workforce.

Paragon Group chief executive Nigel Terrington said it was too early to say how many jobs would go.

But he said Paragon was looking to build Britannic's business and said it would try to keep job cuts to a minimum.