Aviva staff are set to receive a £1,000 handout to help navigate the cost of living crisis.

In an email sent out to staff, the firm announced it was giving workers earning £35,000 or less a one-off payment in October.

The Norwich-based insurance giant said that the money will be subject to normal deductions such as tax and national insurance, and eligible staff will see it in their October payslips.

Workers at the Norwich offices will also see the removal of the £3 daily charge on its car parks, with any final parking charges for June being taken from their August pay.

In its email to staff Aviva said: "We know the cost of living is a worry for many of you, as energy costs continue to rise.

"We’ve been thinking about what we can do to help our people, and so today we’re announcing that we’re giving our colleagues who earn £35,000 or less a one-off payment in October to help with rising energy costs.

"While we recognise that this won’t benefit everyone, we want to focus the payment where we believe it will have the biggest impact."

Trade union Unite, which represents Aviva workers, welcomed the payment but said that it doesn't go far enough.

Caren Evans, national officer at Unite, said: “The campaign to give urgent help to the lowest paid across Aviva has borne some results today. But this doesn’t go far enough and Unite will continue to press for the meaningful support the workforce deserve.

“Aviva made £1.63bn in profits in 2021 and has announced a payment of £4.75bn back to shareholders.

"So Unite has no doubt that Aviva can afford to support its staff through the cost of living crisis. Aviva workers deserve a fair share of the pie.”

Aviva is one of a number of UK companies that have recently announced one-off payments to help staff manage rising costs.

Both Virgin Money and Lloyds Bank are giving workers £1,000 handouts.

British Airways and EasyJet have also been offering one-off bonuses to employees.

Some trade unions have, however, been critical of the payments, saying staff would be better off in the long-term with a pay rise that is close to or matches inflation.