’With the resources many insurers have at hand, they can certainly help by leading by example,’ says executive director 

It is “everyone’s” responsibility in the insurance industry to ensure climate targets are met, according to Biba executive director Graeme Trudgill.

Read: Brokers lack urgency and interest in net zero transition – Ecclesiastical Insurance

Read: Climate activists stage fake fire outside Lloyd’s of London

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Trudgill told Insurance Times that becoming net zero was not one person’s responsbility, while firms were at “different stages of their journey”.

It came after data and analytics company firm GlobalData warned in April 2023 that UK brokers were struggling to identify insurers leading the line in environmental, social and governance (ESG) credentials.

According to its 2023 UK broker insurance survey, which sought feedback from 250 respondents in Q1 2023, a total of 73.7% said they did not know which insurers were leading the way and 1.7% said “none” were.

“This level of uncertainty suggests that brokers do not consider ESG to be essential when working with insurers, as very few brokers are able to identify insurers who are strong in the area,” said Ben Carey-Evans, senior insurance analyst at GlobalData.

Trudgill said: “The broker market is diverse and Biba has seen that firms are at different stages of their journey.

“Given the differing needs of brokers, no one insurer is likely to be able to provide suitable assistance for all.”

’Lead by example’

In April 2023,  Ecclesiastical Insurance commercial director Adrian Saunders said insurers “need to lead by example” in ecnouraging brokers to begin their net zero journey.

Read: Marsh launches new (re)insurance capacity for hydrogen energy projects

Read: Insurance sector – especially brokers – must lead ‘stewardship’ of net zero transitions

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And Trudgill said that several insurers have been liasing with Biba about the assistance they can provide.

He added: “With the resources many insurers have at hand, they can certainly help by leading by example and demonstrate their efforts towards measuring and reducing their carbon footprint.

“There is a huge amount of commentary and publicly available information on climate change and other ESG topics.”

 

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