TYCOON Richard Branson has been accused of pulling "a publicity stunt" by signing former Scottish Widows advert woman Deborah Moore as his first health insurance customer.
Ms Moore, the daughter of James Bond actor Roger, yesterday helped launch Virgin's new British range of no nonsense financial products. She became famous as the star of Scottish Widows' hugely successful television advertising campaign and the company is clearly not amused by Mr Branson's move.
In a statement, the Edinburgh based company said: "This publicity stunt merely reflects the Scottish Widows' brand strength, our pre eminent position in the life insurance market and the success of the image of the widow." Ms Moore's contract with Scottish Widows ended 16 months ago when she left to pursue an acting career.
But a spokesman for Virgin Direct denied the move was designed to poke fun at Scottish Widows. "It is not an attack, it is a strong way of getting our message across. It is more of a dig at the industry in general", he said. "In true Virgin style we are looking to put a bit of pizzazz into things and this was too good a chance to miss.
"She is the first member of the public to sign up", the Virgin spokesman added. "The financial services industry has got away with being too traditional and complicated."
