Direct Line founder Sir Peter Wood says Aviva should increase its provide

Amanda Blanc needs to raise her bid for insurer Direct Line by ‘several hundred million pounds’ if the Aviva boss is to secure control of its rival, founder Sir Peter Wood says.

Speaking to The Mail on Sunday from his Palm Beach mansion in Florida, near to Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago, he also expressed frustration at Direct Line losing its way.

‘I made it the world’s most efficient insurance company’, he said, describing how he eliminated the middleman in the form of the insurance broker.

‘It’s sad it’s been run so badly. After I left, the HR department multiplied ten times. It didn’t develop a female brand, multi-car or multi-family policies, and just seemed to go backwards.’ Wood says staying off comparison websites was a mistake, adding: ‘They should have made Direct Line a premier product, where people answer the phone immediately and you got an individual giving you personal attention.’

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He expressed sympathy for chief executive Adam Winslow’s effort to turn it around, saying: ‘He is trying to do a good job, but it’s a three or four year job.’

On Thursday, Direct Line rejected Aviva’s £3.3 billion bid, whereby shareholders would receive £1.12p a share in cash and 0.28 of a new Aviva share for every Direct Line share held.