When news breaks regarding insurance businesses moving to embrace more sustainable and climate-friendly activities, all too often the companies featured are global conglomerates rolling out or investing in multi-million-pound programmes. And while these partnerships are beneficial for the profession and the environment in a wider context, they can make sustainability seem somewhat inaccessible for smaller businesses.
Across the UK insurance sector, however, several firms are challenging that narrative and investing in sustainability initiatives that are steadily proving that every action, whether large or small, really does count. MD at Ascend Broking Group, Matthew Collins highlighted that brokers can start small and build their way up to broader initiatives. Things as simple as turning down your air conditioning a few degrees, or turning off office lights out of hours are a great way to start.
Ascend Broking recently announced a major new partnership with the environmental charity More Trees to help offset the impacts of carbon and boost global conservation projects. The carbon offsetting initiative first came about, he said, because the group insures a lot of motor fleets – including everything from haulage, to couriers, to general business fleets.
“I’d been thinking for a long time about what we could do to try to offset that carbon footprint, outside of the normal things we were already doing, from having computers on standby and not printing,” he said. “So, I came up with the idea of planting a tree for every single policy that we insure, and also a tree for every motor vehicle that we insure, with a view of trying to get to 10,000 trees – which make up the ‘Ascend Forest’.”
Like Collins, Anthony Geller (pictured above), MD of Prima Insurance Brokers has long recognised the need for insurance businesses to be aware of the impact that they are having on the planet. This is widely accepted across the Prima brands, he said, and, as such, the group has pledged to ensure that it is carbon neutral.
“By working with the brilliant team at Ripple Africa we are helping to give back to the environment by donating to their Carbon Offsetting programme and facilitating the planting of trees in Malawi,” he said. “On top of this, we have pledged to plant four trees for every life insurance policy that is taken out. The reason for this is twofold, it allows our customers to donate to a worthy cause at no extra cost to themselves, and secondly it ensures that the Prima Group is carbon positive.”
Collins highlighted that everybody has a part to play in protecting the environment and that there is a need for firms to partner with the right people to enable carbon offsetting to be done at the scale at which it is required. There’s also a lot of government incentives for more localised carbon offsetting that businesses should be aware of, he said, and he believes that it won’t be long until every business is doing something like this.
Read more: Poll reveals Lloyd’s brokers’ apprehension
“The insurance industry has a part to play both in educating the general public and reducing its contributions to climate change,” added Geller. “By planting trees for each policy we are enabling our clients to reduce some of their emissions at no cost to themselves. This also shows to our clients the importance of carbon offsetting and this is part of a wider plan to have education pieces in the future through monthly newsletters, etc.”
Ascend Broking’s partnership with More Trees is just the first of many such initiatives that the firm will be looking to roll out over the next 12 to 24 months, Collins said. He attested to the importance of brokers leading by example when it comes to sustainable practices, and to the role of smaller, more nimble brokers in showing their larger, more inflexible peers how to achieve an eco-friendly status.
Geller also emphasised how important it is that community brokers lead by example, citing the close personal relationships that brokers have with their clients and the opportunity these represent to educate businesses and individuals on how to follow suit.
“Climate change has a significant on insurance claims such as flood, storm, fires etc,” he said, “If we don’t tackle climate change this will, in turn, cause a rise in insurance premiums and increased endorsement and excesses for claims which may be related to climate change. If everyone assists a little with either becoming sustainable or carbon neutral, everyone will benefit significantly.”
