Hill Samuel Property Unit Trust has dropped Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP) in favour of Hermes Property Asset Management in a property mandate switch worth £500m (€816m).

The loss is doubly tough coming in the same week that SWIP's role as sole manager for the Port of London Authority's three pension funds was put under review because of its merger with Hill Samuel earlier this year. SWIP manages £370.5m for the Port of London Authority.