Insure Our Future responds to EIOPA’s recognition of the elevated risks of fossil fuels

In response to the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) recommendation of a “dedicated prudential treatment for insurers’ fossil fuel assets to cushion against transition risks” Minyoung Shin, Global Coordinator for Insure Our Future, said: ###

Institutional investors conduct climate change engagement with SOMPO after being encouraged by environmental NGOs

Tokyo, October 28, 2024 – In the last week of August, five environmental NGOs (Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society (JACSES), Friends of the Earth Japan, Mekong Watch, Rainforest Action Network, Insure Our Future) sent a request letter to 50 financial institutions that are major shareholders of SOMPO Holdings, requesting to engage with …

Generali, a new step forward in the fight against oil and gas expansion

Trieste, 22 October 2024 – Today, Italian insurer Generali announced it will no longer provide insurance for risks associated with oil and gas expansion, including new liquified natural gas (LNG) terminals and gas-fired power plants (1). Generali is the first insurer globally to adopt a policy covering the entire oil and gas value chain for …

For a few dollars more -Report by Reclaim Finance

For a few dollars more – the Fossil Fuel Policies of Lloyd’s Managing Agents 2

London, 9 October 2024 – Lloyd’s of London, the world’s leading insurance market, is holding back climate action through its on-going support for fossil fuel expansion, according to new analysis from Reclaim Finance (1). While other major European insurers’ no longer cover new fossil fuel projects, Lloyd’s of London continues to provide cover, with no …

Zurich lake

Too little, too late: Zurich publishes unambitious transition plan

Zurich, 20 September 2024 – Zurich Insurance published its first transition plan yesterday. Campax and Insure Our Future welcome the move, but are disappointed with the unambitious emission reduction targets.  Zurich Insurance, ranked 4th globally in primary insurance and 6th in insuring fossil fuels, was previously a member of the Net Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA). …

Letter sent to SOMPO’s 50 shareholders to engage with the insurer to stop underwriting new fossil fuels

Below, the letter “Request to engage with SOMPO to stop underwriting new fossil fuel projects” was submitted to SOMPO’s 50 large shareholders. August 28, 2024 Dear Shareholders of SOMPO Holdings, Request to engage with SOMPO to stop underwriting new fossil fuel projects Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society (JACSES) Friends of the Earth …

Property & Casualty Companies Facing Rising Claims While Fostering Fossil Fuels

Today, the shareholder advocacy organization Investors for Paris Compliance (I4PC) released a report outlining the role of Canada’s property and casualty insurance industry in encouraging fossil fuels while facing rising climate claims and passing along these costs to policyholders. The report Playing With Fire: Canadian Insurers and Fossil Fuels shows how the industry redistributes climate-related risks and …

Report: Playing With Fire: Canadian Insurers & Fossil Fuels

There is a contradiction within Canada’s property and casualty (P&C) industry. By its own admission, climate change is threatening the industry’s business model with increased risk and rising claims, yet it is complicit in increasing this risk via its underwriting and investing in the fossil fuel industry.

How The Insurance Industry Impacts Climate Chaos In Bangladesh

The dangerous impacts of climate change – the flooding, droughts, extreme heat, tropical cyclones,  severe storms, erosion, water contamination and groundwater depletion  – are well known and witnessed daily in Bangladesh, my home, but one thing that’s less obvious is the role of the insurance industry in the crisis. Burning fossil fuels is the number …

Letter — SOMPO: Stop Underwriting Rio Grande LNG

Ahead of SOMPO’s AGM, a letter signed by 28 Environmental NGOs, including Rainforest Action Network and the Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society, was delivered urging the company to cease underwriting and investing in a contentious LNG export terminal planned in Brownsville, Texas, United States, as well as in all oil, gas, and …

SOMPO: Stop Underwriting Rio Grande LNG

Japanese insurance major’s support for the controversial gas project draws protests at annual general meeting. TOKYO, JAPAN – JUNE 24, 2024 – Today, environmental NGOs including Rainforest Action Network and the Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society gathered in front of SOMPO’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) to demand the Japanese insurance giant stop …

A Just Transition To Clean Energy Can Benefit Insurers and Communities

Insurers are facing the consequences of their decisions over the last half-century. Over the past month, the unfolding insurance crisis has captured headlines. The New York Times detailed how extreme weather events are stretching the insurance sector to its limits, testing the boundaries of what can and cannot be insured. Concurrently, The Guardian highlighted IPCC …

Aerial view of Vienna - Vienna, Austria

VIG lacks ambition as it slows on progress: Insure Our Future statement on updated sustainability policy

Vienna, 15 May 2024 – In response to Vienna Insurance Group’s updated sustainability rules:

Analysis: Chubb’s new conservation and methane standards remain inadequate but should exclude support for EACOP

New criteria falls short of aligning with 1.5°C San Francisco – In a SEC filing of “Additional Proxy Soliciting Materials” Chubb quietly updated its oil, gas, and conservation policies. RAN’s analysis, released ahead of Chubb’s Annual General Meeting Thursday, May 16th, has concluded that while the updates are a small improvement, the loopholes and narrow …

AXA must end its support for LNG

2023 was the hottest year on record, as well as the year in which we saw insurance companies abandon their customers most affected by climate risks. Climate change, mainly caused by the burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas), is accompanied by ever more intense and frequent climatic disasters: forest fires, floods, drought, hurricanes, …

Insuring Disaster 2024

ShareAction Report: Insurance’s triple whammy threatens the survival of people and planet

London, 15 April 2024 – A major investigation into the world’s 65 largest insurance companies from the responsible investment charity ShareAction, released 11 April 2024, shows that both people and planet face the triple whammy from insurance companies underwriting and investing in projects that are increasing global warming, damaging the natural environment and failing to …

Finance Watch Logo

New Finance Watch report clarifies ingredients for impactful transition plans for insurers

Brussels, 12 April 2024 – A new report from Finance Watch outlines the steps that must be taken to ensure effective implementation of mandatory transition plans for insurance companies as tools to support transition and manage the related risks. It outlines the urgent need for supervised “prudential” transition plans, pointing to the financial instability that …

IOF Lloyd's Building 24

Campaigners demand ‘polluters pay’ as insurance industry meet for inaugural sustainability summit

Today, as the insurance industry convenes for the first Global Sustainable Insurance Summit in Los Angeles, the 32 campaign groups of the Insure Our Future network have sent a letter to the world’s leading fossil fuel insurers, detailing how they can accelerate the transition to a clean and just energy economy. Demands in the letter …

Zurich Insurance Protest Global Week of Action 2024

Insure Our Future Responds to Zurich’s New Oil and Gas Exit Policy

Zurich, 8 April 2024 – In a Bloomberg story today, the Zurich Insurance Group today announced major new fossil fuel restrictions, excluding the underwriting of new oil and gas extraction and metallurgical coal projects. The Insure Our Future campaign and its Swiss member Campax welcomed the news and called on AIG, Tokio Marine and the big Lloyd’s …

Tokio Marine’s strengthened climate policy does not go far enough

Tokio Marine, Japan’s biggest property and casualty insurer and the 15th largest fossil fuel underwriter in the world, announced on 13th March that its largest subsidiary, Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co. Ltd. (TMNF), is strengthening its engagement policy with 60 companies in high Greenhouse Gas (GHG) intensive sectors, and commits to stop insuring, …

Thousands take part in powerful global week of action demanding Insurance industry take climate action

This week has been an incredible global week of action for the Insure Our Future campaign, with thousands of people taking part in over 100 actions across 31 countries in 5 continents, including over 100,000 people taking action online. In-person actions include protests in Japan, South Korea, Nigeria, Uganda, Indonesia, UK, USA, Philippines, Pakistan, Tanzania, …

Insure Our Future XR London Action

Probitas pulls out of EACOP and West Cumbria coal mine

London, 4 March 2024 – (guest content published by Extinction Rebellion) Major insurer Probitas1492 have today (Monday) confirmed that they will never insure two major ‘carbon bomb’ projects – the East African Crude Oil Pipeline and the proposed West Cumbria coal mine – after a week of peaceful protest from Extinction Rebellion (XR) and members …

Zurich or Dubai?

Statement by Peter Bosshard at the Global Week of Action, Zurich, February 28, 2024 The fossil fuel industry is destroying our planet. After us the deluge, is their motto! The expansion of fossil fuel extraction would not be possible without insurance. And whenever we find information about who is insuring coal and oil projects, Zurich is …

Why people in nearly 30 countries are protesting at insurance companies

In the last week of February, people in over 30 countries across the world organized demonstrations, marches, and community events at some of the largest global insurance companies – including AIG, Tokio Marine, Zurich, Chubb, Lloyd’s of London, Travelers, Sompo, and The Hartford. These events brought a clear message: Insure our future, not fossil fuels. …

Global Week of Action calls on insurance companies to take urgent climate action

The insurance industry holds the key to a safer, prosperous future if they act now. Over 100 groups in over 27 countries across 5 continents are holding over 80 demonstrations, marches, direct actions and events this week with a clear message: Insure Our Future, not fossil fuels. The insurance industry is uniquely positioned to drive …

Insurance companies can’t hide anymore: communities from across the globe demand action

The Insure Our Future network and communities from across the world are coming together for the first ever Global Week of Action to spotlight and target the insurance industry for their role in the climate crisis and demand action. Groups in over 27 countries across 5 continents are holding a week’s worth of demonstrations, marches, …

Risk Exposure: The insurers secretly backing the methane gas boom in the U.S. Gulf South

Report with FOIA information reveals which insurers are part of the biggest fossil fuel buildout of this generation Houston, Texas –  At least 35 different insurance companies are responsible for underwriting liquified methane export terminal projects across the U.S Gulf South, according to a report released today by Rainforest Action Network and Public Citizen. The …

A shot of natural gas storage tanks in sphere shape in Okayama, Japan

REPORT: Risk Exposure: The insurers secretly backing the methane gas boom in the U.S. Gulf South

At least 35 different insurance companies are responsible for underwriting liquified methane export terminal projects across the U.S Gulf South, according to a report by Rainforest Action Network and Public Citizen. The analysis, based on documents obtained through open record requests, details the insurance coverage for existing and projected methane gas infrastructure that, if built, …

Oil Refinery Gas Chemical Equipment Prodiction import export Concept, Crude Oil Refinery Plant Steel Pump Pipe line and Chimney and Cooling tower, Chemical or Petrochemical Factory plant, industry

Victory as Leading Global Insurers at Lloyd’s of London Rule Out Controversial East African Crude Oil Pipeline

In a significant win for the natural world and the global movement fighting fossil fuel pollution, leading (re)insurance companies SiriusPoint, Riverstone International, Enstar Group, and specialty insurers Blenheim and SA Meacock, have all officially ruled out involvement in the controversial East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project. A total of 28 (re)insurers have now declared …

Korean edition: 50 Years of Climate Failure: 2023 Scorecard on Insurance, Fossil Fuels and the Climate Emergency

Fifty years after the industry first warned about the growing risks of climate change it continues to provide insurance that allows new fossil fuel projects to go ahead. Insurers are abandoning customers affected by climate risks, yet most continue to fuel the climate emergency by providing cover for increased oil and gas production. Download the …

Zurich in the morning by elxeneize

Global association of Insurance CEOs confronted by climate protest at 50th summit – Will they ‘Safeguard the Planet’ or Greenwash business as usual?

Zurich, 28 November 2023 – Insure Our Future campaigners are protesting at the Geneva Association’s 50th anniversary summit in Zurich today, demanding that the global insurance industry take immediate action to slow the climate crisis and support the urgent transition from fossil fuels to renewables.  The Geneva Association calls itself the only international association of …

A shot of natural gas storage tanks in sphere shape in Okayama, Japan

MS&AD Announce Significant Emission Reduction Target

Tokyo, 22 November 2023 – On November 21, MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings (hereafter MS&AD), one of Japan’s three major property and casualty insurers, announced a greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction target of 37%  for the underwriting and investment portfolio of its domestic clients by 2030, using 2019 as a baseline year* (PR in Japanese). This …

Campaigners call on the International Association of Insurance Supervisors to take action on climate

Activists gathered in front of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) annual conference venue in Tokyo, Japan, on the 9th of November, asking the global standard-setting body to take decisive measures and strengthen their efforts to prevent the worsening of the global climate crisis. 📣Outside the @IAISNews annual conference last week attended by over …

Insurers withdraw cover for climate risks while backing increased fossil fuel production, industry must act to support 1.5°C climate target after 50 years of failure

Global, 9 November 2023 – Fifty years after the insurance industry first warned about the impact of climate change it is continuing to fuel the climate emergency, the Insure Our Future campaign warns today in its seventh annual scorecard on insurers’ climate policies. The growing frequency and severity of floods, hurricanes, wildfires, droughts and other …

50 Years of Climate Failure: 2023 Scorecard on Insurance, Fossil Fuels and the Climate Emergency

Fifty years after the industry first warned about the growing risks of climate change it continues to provide insurance that allows new fossil fuel projects to go ahead. Insurers are abandoning customers affected by climate risks, yet most continue to fuel the climate emergency by providing cover for increased oil and gas production. Download the …

Tokyo cityscape at sunset by Claudio Ventrella

Open letter demanding climate risk regulatory action from the International Association of Insurance Supervisors

Tokyo, 31 October 2023 Dear IAIS Executive Committee Chair Saporta and Vice Chair Ariizumi: CC: IAIS Executive Committee, Climate Risk Steering Group Chair and Vice Chair, and Secretariat We write to you today from dozens of climate, environment, and consumer protection organisations, as you prepare for the IAIS annual meeting, to express our deep concern …

The IAIS Needs to Step Up on Climate

Insurance companies continue to insure and invest in fossil fuels and are abandoning climate affected communities instead. The Net Zero Insurance Alliance has failed to define meaningful steps for addressing climate risk, so regulators need to step up. The International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) holds its annual meeting in Tokyo on November 6-10 and …

Huge quarry bucket excavator works in a hot outdoors slag dump.

Reinsurers fuel the climate crisis while climate victims pay the price

Baden-Baden, 20 October 2023 – Ahead of the annual reinsurance congress in Baden-Baden, Urgewald and the international Insure Our Future network call on reinsurers to end their continued unqualified support of the fossil fuel industry, emissions from which are the prime contributor to global climate change. Reinsurance companies, whose role is to provide insurance to …

Oil refineries illuminated at night in Wakayama, Japan

Tokio Marine’s intermediate decarbonisation target lacks ambition and impact

Tokyo, 2 October 2023 – On September 29th, Tokio Marine, Japan’s biggest property and casualty insurer and the 7th* biggest globally, announced its “Interim Target for 2030 for the Transition to a Decarbonized Society“. It has set an engagement target within its domestic subsidiary, Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd. (TMNF), to engage …

Coal mining in surface mine. Miner looking on the huge excavator.

Leading European insurers underwrite 30% of U.S. coal despite net zero pledges

Washington, D.C., 28 September 2023 – Leading European insurers are underwriting nearly a third of U.S. coal production despite their net zero commitments, reveals a new report released today by Insure Our Future. Lloyd’s of London, Zurich and Swiss Re are among the top ten insurers of the 25 biggest U.S. mines, which produced more …

View into a coal mine with working wheel excavator

International NGOs urge climate laggards Samsung Fire and Marine and Samsung Life to immediately set comprehensive coal phase out policies and stop renewing coal insurance

Seoul, 21 September 2023 – In a collective effort to address the climate crisis, a group of 29 NGOs from across the world, including Solutions for Our Climate (SFOC) and Insure Our Future, has issued an open letter to the CEOs of Samsung Fire and Marine (Samsung FM) and Samsung Life Insurance demanding stronger climate …

nyiragongo volcano, nord Kivu, DRC

New Report from Greenpeace: Congo oil fields are quickly becoming uninsurable

Kinshasa, 8 September 2023 – Any company granted exploration and exploitation rights in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) oil auction could find itself without financial protection, according to a report published today by Greenpeace Africa, Insure our Future, Reclaim Finance and Urgewald. If leading insurance and reinsurance companies follow their commitments and their general …

Allianz’s transition plan: bold but with serious loopholes

On September 7, 2023, leading global insurance company Allianz published its first Net Zero Transition Plan.  Peter Bosshard, Global Network Coordinator of the Insure Our Future campaign commented: Allianz’s transition plan is transparent, comprehensive, timely and in many ways ambitious but contains serious gaps when it comes to new gas infrastructure. If Allianz closes these loopholes, its transition …

Lloyd's of London Building

Lloyd’s ESG update: A step towards forgotten commitments, or more greenwashing?

London, 5 September 2023, first published in The Insurer – Lloyd’s of London, one of the world’s largest insurers of fossil fuels, has said it will comment more expansively on ESG guidance in September 2023. It is anticipated to be a further distancing from Lloyd’s first ESG policy, published in December 2020, and another textbook …

Insurance Industry Scorecard Update Reports 20 Global Insurers now Protect Land Sacred to Alaska Natives in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

FAIRBANKS, AK – An update to the Gwich’in Steering Committee (GSC) insurance industry scorecard released today reports 20 insurers now have a policy that protects Iizhik Gwats’an Gwandaii Goodlit (“The Sacred Place Where Life Begins”) from oil and gas development. The scorecard tracks global insurance companies’ policies on fossil fuel development in the coastal plain of the Arctic …

Cityscape Tokyo Japan

Three major Japanese non-life insurers left NZIA and failed to disclose the intermediate targets by deadline – NGOs urge insurers to set intermediate targets for emissions of their underwriting portfolio immediately

Tokyo, 2 August 2023, Joint Statement via Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society (JACSES), Kiko Network, Friends of the Earth Japan, 350.org Japan, Mekong Watch and Insure Our Future – Three major Japanese non-life insurers (Tokio Marine Holdings, SOMPO Holdings and MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings), which left the UN-led Net-Zero Insurance Alliance (hereinafter …

Gas storage sphere tank in petrochemical industry zone with oil and gas

AXA, the 10th insurer to (almost) stop covering new gas fields

Paris, 28 July 2023 via Reclaim Finance – French insurer AXA has announced it will no longer cover new gas fields, becoming the 10th insurer to make such a commitment (1). But AXA has not gone as far as some of its peers, allowing exceptions for companies it considers to be “in transition”. Reclaim Finance …

UNEP caves to the fossil fuel lobby on NZIA target setting

Dropping the obligation to set emission reduction targets will turn the NZIA into an empty shell In a statement published on July 5, UNEP announced that the Net Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) will no longer require its members to set and publish targets for reducing their insured emissions (1). This will reduce the NZIA to …

Lloyd’s of London Insurer Probitas Exits Controversial Adani Coal Mine

This week, facing mounting pressure from campaigners, Lloyd’s of London syndicate, Probitas1492, ruled out providing insurance for Adani’s Carmichael coal mine and its related infrastructure.  Probitas was known to insure the mine’s transport system, but also admitted that the mine itself had been insured through the Lloyd’s of London marketplace. Ash Bathia, Chief Executive Officer …

Oil Rig at Sunset

In a new fossil fuel policy Helvetia offers insurance for the oil companies it divests from

St. Gallen, 30 July 2023 – Helvetia, one of the biggest Swiss insurance companies, has adopted a new fossil fuel policy which excludes cover for new coal and extreme oil projects and excludes investments in coal, oil and gas companies which are still expanding their production. Through a massive loophole, the policy however allows Helvetia …

Activists demand Tokio Marine rule out EACOP at annual shareholder meeting

On 26 June 2023, citizens and environmental NGOs gathered in front of the AGM venue of Tokio Marine Holdings; Japan’s biggest and one of the world’s top 10 oil and gas insurers.  #StopEACOP activists question Tokio Marine’s ethics  Risa Iizuka, a youth activist and Field Organizer at 350.org Japan, condemned the 1,400km-long  East African Crude …

Mother's Rise Up Mary Poppins themed protest

Why mothers are taking on the insurance industry

The insurance sector is the Achilles’ heel of the fossil fuel industry  Without insurance, fossil fuel companies cannot operate and fossil fuel projects cannot be built or maintained.   This is why we, at Mothers Rise Up, a UK climate-parent group, focus our creative energy on the insurance sector, particularly on the world’s oldest, biggest and …

Capitol the United States building with the dome lit up at night the Senate House sides of the building

Senate budget committee calls on AIG and other U.S. insurers to disclose fossil fuel support and respect human rights

Washington D.C., 9 June 2023 –  The Senate Budget Committee today called on insurance giants American Insurance Group, Inc. (AIG), Chubb Corp, Liberty Mutual Group, Starr Wright USA, Berkshire Hathaway, State Farm, and Travelers Insurance to disclose their coverage for and investments in fossil fuels and information on how each insurer respects human rights. The Committee’s letter, …

U.S. Senate Budget Committee’s letters to insurance companies

Senator Whitehouse (D-RI), Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, and fellow Committee members Senators Wyden (D-OR) and Sanders (I-VT) launched an investigation into how the U.S. insurance industry evaluates climate-related risks, decides to invest in or underwrite fossil fuel expansion projects that drive such risks, and prices policies that insure such projects. In letters sent to AIG, Berkshire …

A hurricane due to climate change

In response to climate deniers, insurers must step up climate action

Written in collaboration with Reclaim Finance. Numerous insurers have quit the Net Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) under pressure from climate denying politicians and officials in the United States. The insurance industry has for decades been aware of the causes and serious consequences of climate change and its business model is being shaken by repeated multi-billion …

Protesters holding a banner outside Vienna Insurance Group headquarters

42 environmental organisations across Central and Eastern Europe unite in denouncing Vienna Insurance Group’s lack of oil and gas policy and are making their voices heard at its AGM

Vienna, 26 May 2023 – Over 40 environmental organisations from Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) have united to publish an open letter [1] addressed to the CEO of Vienna Insurance Group (VIG), Ms. Elisabeth Stadler, expressing deep concern over the company’s lack of an oil and gas policy and its too laxed coal policy, and …

Insure Our Future’s response to the Net Zero Insurance Alliance exodus

What’s happening with the Net Zero Insurance Alliance  Today, French reinsurer SCOR, the world’s 7th biggest non-life reinsurance company left the Net Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) while significantly strengthening its oil and gas restrictions at the same time. At its AGM, the reinsurer today announced that it would no longer underwrite the development of new …

SCOR AGM: French reinsurer to no longer cover new gas fields

Paris, 25 May 2023 – At its Annual General Meeting (AGM) today, the first for the new CEO Thierry Léger, SCOR announced that it will no longer cover new gas field development projects (1). Reclaim Finance welcomes these new climate commitments and calls on Thierry Léger to also exclude new liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals …

Oil and gas platform in Norway

Insurance giants complicit in Norway’s oil and gas expansion

Oslo, 24 May 2023 – A new report from Greenpeace Nordic reveals for the first time the extent that insurance companies are prioritising dirty profits over the future of the planet by facilitating new oil and gas projects in defiance of the Paris Agreement targets and their own greenwashing rhetoric. The report, Ensuring Disaster, was …

Over 500 students refuse to work for climate-wrecking Lloyd’s of London and others

Read The Guardian article, “UK students pledge ‘career boycott’ of insurers over fossil fuels,” published on May 24, 2023 covering the students who refuse to work for climate-wrecking insurance companies. The text of the letter to Lloyd’s of London, Beazley, Brit, Hiscox, Liberty Managing Agents, Chaucer and Tokio Marine Kiln management is as follows: “We, …

Insurers’ shift away from fossil fuels continues in spite of political obstruction

This article first appeared on Environmental Finance. You can find the article here. The recent departures of Munich Re, Zurich and Hannover Re from the Net Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) have created a lot of debate. Amidst all the noise it’s important to remember the following basic facts about net zero commitments. Munich Re has cited antitrust concerns as the reason …

Another major insurance group commits to stop insuring new oil and gas exploration

Germany, Hanover May 2, 2023 – Talanx, a major German insurance group which operates globally, has adopted new restrictions on oil and gas. New oil and gas fields will no longer be insured as of July 1, 2023.  New oil power plants and new infrastructure directly associated with new oil fields will also be excluded. …

AXA AGM: A missed opportunity for climate justice

Paris, 27 April 2023 – At its annual general meeting (AGM), AXA missed the opportunity to regain its climate leadership. Despite a call from a representative from an impacted community to warn of the impacts of oil and gas projects in Texas, the group reiterated its support for new gas projects in the name of …

Open letter from 23 faith leaders: Lloyd’s of London must address its fossil fuel policy

Writing in the Times on 24 April, 2023 faith leaders called on the world’s largest insurance market to “show leadership” by ending insurance for all new fossil fuel projects. The text of the letter is below. Dear Bruce Carnegie-Brown and John Neal, As representatives of UK faith organisations, we are writing to you to ask …

Korean property and casualty insurers lack oil and gas insurance and investment policies

Eight out of nine companies score “0” on oil and gas insurance and investment policies. Need to establish a policy on overall fossil fuels to manage climate change risk. Even as fossil fuels were (and still are) being identified for exacerbating climate change, it was found that Korean domestic property and casualty insurers have no …

Mounting Opposition to EACOP: New Finance Risk Update Highlights Risks for Banks and Insurers

A new Finance Risk Update on the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project highlights the mounting opposition to the project in Uganda, Tanzania, and globally, citing significant financial, reputational, and legal risks. The update shows that even more banks and insurers are withdrawing their support for the project, bringing the total number of banks …

The good, the bad and the ugly: The fossil fuel policies of Lloyd’s managing agents

A new briefing focused on Lloyd’s of London and its managing agents finds Lloyd’s is failing the climate responsibility test by allowing unchecked fossil fuel expansion and by not ensuring that its managing agents meet even the minimum standards that Lloyd’s has previously recommended. An analysis by Reclaim Finance of Lloyd’s top 20 managing agents (who represent …

Lloyd’s of London still on a fossil fuel diet

Disclaimer: Beazley indicated to Reclaim Finance a few hours before the release of the report to have decided to align with Lloyd’s policy and no longer underwrite new coal mines and plants as well as new tar sands, or arctic energy exploration projects, or companies which generated more than 5% revenues from these activities. This …

Insure Our Future campaign responds to Zurich’s exit from the Net Zero Insurance Alliance

Following Munich Re, Zurich is the second founding member of the Net Zero Insurance Alliance to leave the NZIA in recent days. The Swiss insurer claims it wants “to focus our resources to support our customers with their transition”. 

EACOP: Lloyd’s Cincinnati rule out pipeline while Talbot stays silent in response to protests

Following a week of protests, Cincinnati Global’s syndicate at Lloyd’s confirmed that it will not insure the East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline, which has been the subject of international protests. (Nick Chalk), Active Underwriter with Cincinnati at Lloyd’s confirmed verbally with a member of the Insure our Future campaign, “We 100% do not write this …

Annual letter to the CEOs of 30 major fossil fuel insurers, 2023

Every year, the Insure Our Future network publishes an open letter to the CEOs of 30 major insurance companies whose fossil fuel policies are ranked annually by Insure Our Future, among which are: AIG, Allianz, AXA, Chubb, Generali, Liberty Mutual, Lloyd’s of London, Munich Re, SCOR, Sinosure, SOMPO, Tokio Marine and Zurich. The letter outlines …

Mother Earth performs outside Lloyd’s of London in Mother’s Day plea for climate action

Mothers Rise Up calls on insurer to change its tune on fossil fuel insurance UK mums staged a concert outside Lloyd’s of London in a Mother’s Day plea to the company to stop insuring new fossil fuel projects in the North Sea and beyond. The event, organised by climate-parent group, Mothers Rise Up, featured a …

A group of activists dressed mostly in red jumpsuits stand in front of an office building with large glass windows. They are holding signs and banners with different phrases about "stopping EACOP" there are yellow signs on the ground and a black fake oil spill on the ground.

Lloyd’s Insurers Talbot & Cincinnati targeted in global ‘week of action’ against ‘toxic’ pipeline

Today, 23rd February activists from the StopEACOP Coalition held an ‘oil spill’ demonstration outside the offices of two insurance companies, Talbot & Cincinnati Global Underwriting to demand the companies rule out the controversial East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP). Activists staged a moveable ‘oil spill,’ with hazard signs that highlighted the risks of the controversial …

Large silver skyscraper building that is the Lloyds of London office with a clear blue sky behind.

British and African Quakers urge against insurance for East African pipeline

In an open letter Paul Parker, recording clerk of Quakers in Britain, and Bainito Wamalwa, Africa section clerk of Friends World Committee for Consultation, asked for a meeting with the world’s leading insurance market to discuss its action on climate change. They urged Lloyd’s Chairman Bruce Carnegie-Brown and Chief Executive John Neal, whose members insure a large …

Insure Our Future calls on insurance brokers to state their position on EACOP

Following the complaint lodged by Ugandan, Tanzanian and U.S. based human rights groups alleging that Marsh is violating OECD guidelines for Multinational Enterprises by serving as insurance broker for the planned East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), the Insure Our Future campaign is calling on the world’s largest insurance brokers to take notice of the …

Insurers and Adani: The End of the Affair

Originally published in ESG Investor on February 9, 2023 Since activist short-seller Hindenburg Research accused the Adani Group of “pulling the largest con in corporate history” on 25 January, the value of the world’s biggest private developer of new coal has been in free fall. The exposure of Adani’s fraud sheds an embarrassing light on organisations – …

Request Letter to Engage with MS&AD to Stop Underwriting Fossil Fuel Projects

The following letter was submitted by five environmental NGOs to 50 financial institutions that are major shareholders of MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings. The full version including tables and appendices are available below. January 18, 2023 Dear Shareholders of MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings, A Request to Engage with MS&AD to Stop Underwriting Fossil Fuel Projects Japan …

Net Zero Insurance Alliance fails to set sufficient climate targets for its members

1​7​ January 2023 – The Net-Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) Target-Setting Protocol, launched today at the World Economic Forum, lacks ambition and opens the door to corporate greenwashing according to the Insure Our Future campaign. ​​​​​The protocol is supposed to set targets for the underwriting portfolios of the 29 insurance and reinsurance NZIA members to align …

Fossil fuel insurers top Christmas 2022’s naughty list

Leaders of some of the world’s biggest insurance companies including Lloyd’s of London, AIG, Swiss Re and Allianz, will find out if they have been naughty or nice when they receive a specially selected Christmas gift from the climate action group, Mothers Rise Up, today. The CEO’s of six insurance companies – Lloyd’s of London …

How insurers can scale up the renewable energy revolution

Global wind power capacity must grow eight- and solar capacity five-fold by 2030 so we can limit global warming to 1.5°C, the International Renewable Energy Agency has found. Scaling up the renewable energy sector is all the more urgent in order to replace Russian fossil fuels with wind and solar rather than new oil and …

South Korea’s only reinsurer, Korean Re, announces to drop new coal, but with loopholes

Korean Reinsurance begins its move away from coal but too slowly, according to civil society  December 6, 2022 – Asia’s second-largest reinsurance company, Korean Re, will no longer be providing reinsurance for new coal mining or power plant construction from next month.   Reinsurance functions as insurance for insurance companies. If reinsurers restrict insurance coverage of …

Arch Insurance & AEGIS London respond to pressure & rule out EACOP

Arch Capital Group Ltd and AEGIS London join the 19 (re)insurance companies ruling out the controversial East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project. Arch Capital Group Ltd responded to ongoing pressure on their insurance business by ruling out insurance for the East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP). A statement issued by the company follows sustained …

Insured emissions protocol fails to meet UN’s net zero standard

In making Scope 3 emissions reporting optional, the PCAF-NZIA protocol violates Race to Zero and UNHLEG recommendations London – Today the Platform for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF) and the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) published their long-awaited Greenhouse Gas Accounting and Reporting Standard for the insurance industry. Under the minimum criteria of the UN Race to …

2022 Global Oil & Gas Exit List (GOGEL)

An industry willing to sacrifice a livable planet • 96% of upstream oil and gas companies are still expanding their operations. • GOGEL is the first tool that makes it possible to systematically assess whether companies are in line with the IEA’s Net Zero Emissions scenario. • LNG terminals under development would more than double …

Insurance CEOs have the power to stop fossil fuel expansion – they must not risk our planet for an extra squeeze of profit

As decision-makers converge in Egypt for the annual climate talks at COP, major new reports warn that we’re at risk of triggering irreversible tipping points in our Earth’s system without rapid and concerted action right now. This year has been a litany of climate disasters ravaging communities, while oil and gas companies are reaping tens …

Reinsurers gathered in Baden-Baden can make or break the climate transition

Monday 24 Oct 2022 – As the global reinsurance sector meets to discuss annual re/insurance contract renewals in Baden-Baden, the Insure Our Future campaign calls on the assembled reinsurers to stop fueling climate catastrophe by underwriting coal, oil and gas production and instead support a rapid transition to renewable energy. Munich Re reported that climate …

2022 Scorecard on Insurance, Fossil Fuels, and the Climate Emergency

Insure Our Future’s annual scorecard ranks the top 30 global fossil fuel insurers on the quality of their fossil fuel exclusion policies. This year Allianz, AXA and Axis Capital rank best for their coal exit policies, while Aviva, Hannover Re and Munich Re come out on top for their oil and gas exclusions. At the bottom of fossil fuel rankings are a group of insurers …

With new coal uninsurable, insurers start to move on oil and gas

62% of reinsurers now have coal exit policies and 38% have oil and gas exclusions as shift away from fossil fuels accelerates Insurance company restrictions on oil and gas are finally starting to catch up with those on coal, according to new data from the Insure Our Future campaign. Ahead of COP27, the campaign coalition …

Who pays for a hurricane?

As climate change spirals out of control, natural disasters are becoming more frequent and expensive. Munich Re, the world’s biggest reinsurance company, reports that natural disasters caused losses of $280 billion in 2021, up from $166 billion in 2019 and $210 billion in 2020. The insurance industry was created to manage risk, but under pressure …

Letter to European insurers about Solvency II sustainability approach

Insure Our Future sent an open letter to sustainability and public policy managers of European insurers about the campaign’s concerns regarding the approach taken by the Solvency II Rapporteur MEP Markus Ferber, who has attempted to have all sustainability criteria removed from Solvency II.

Tokio Marine’s latest climate policy falls short of global peers

On 30 September 2022, Tokio Marine, Japan’s biggest international insurer, updated its climate policy to rule out new underwriting and investment in tar sands mining and oil and gas explorations in the Arctic areas. While Insure our Future welcomes the company’s commitment to stop supporting some extreme fossil fuels projects, considering its presence in the …

World’s largest reinsurer announces major new oil and gas policy

Today, Munich Re, the world’s largest reinsurer, has taken a major step away from oil and gas. Munich Re has committed that as of 1 April 2023 it will no longer invest in or insure contracts/projects exclusively covering the planning, financing, construction or operation of new oil and gas fields, new midstream oil infrastructure and …

Exposed: Insurers of Ichthys LNG – one of world’s biggest gas projects

Will major insurers rule out support for Ichthys LNG’s expansion? One month before COP27, Reclaim Finance calls on global insurers not to renew insurance coverage to Ichthys LNG, one of the most carbon-intensive liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects in Australia whose promoters TotalEnergies and Inpex (1) are currently planning its climate-wrecking expansion. Based on rare …

Mums climate action at England-India cricket match: Chair of Lords & Lloyd’s told ‘fossil fuels are just not cricket’

A group of mums unfurled a huge banner at today’s England – India cricket match challenging Bruce Carnegie-Brown, Chair of Marylebone Cricket Club and Lloyd’s of London – one the world’s biggest insurers of fossil fuels – to take ambitious climate action. The 9 metre banner – with the message ‘Bruce: Fossil Fuels are just …

Baden-Baden 2022: Time for reinsurers to stop fueling climate catastrophes and start accelerating the clean energy transition

From 23-26 October, underwriters and brokers from the global reinsurance industry will meet at the annual Baden-Baden reinsurance meeting in Germany to negotiate new reinsurance contracts. Given the foundational and decisive role of the reinsurance industry in enabling fossil fuel extraction, the Baden-Baden meeting deserves critical attention. Looking at the dynamics of the 2022 Baden-Baden …

#StopEACOP response to media reports claiming that EACOP is fully insured

Recent media reports in The Independent and Nile Post suggest that the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) has been fully insured and reinsured with local firms through the Insurance Consortium for Oil and Gas in Uganda (ICOG). The #StopEACOP campaign believes this information is misleading—numerous official documents indicate (and standard practice in the industry …

Generali supports Europe’s most polluting companies despite its proclaimed coal policy

A few weeks before Generali’s shareholder meeting, scheduled for April 29, Re:Common and Greenpeace Italia release an Italian publication and English brief which shows that Generali is one of the key players in supporting the European coal sector, particularly in countries that still strongly depend on the most polluting of fossil fuels: Poland, the Czech …

Poland’s biggest insurer fails to act on fossil fuels

PZU, the biggest financial group in Central and Eastern Europe with presence in Poland, Ukraine, and the Baltic states, released a weak new strategy for 2021 to 2024. With consolidated assets of close to 85 billion euros at the end of 2020, PZU remains the biggest EU-based insurer with no coal investment nor underwriting restrictions, …

30+ groups call on Tokio Marine to drop fossil fuels

As the Olympics Torch Relay kicks off in Japan, actions in Tokyo, Seoul, Delhi, Jakarta, New York, San Francisco, Sydney and Melbourne demand Tokio Marine take climate action Starting March 25, actions around the world mark the global launch of a campaign calling on insurance giant Tokio Marine to stop underwriting and investing in fossil …

Campaign groups demand Lloyd’s stop insuring offshore oil drilling in The Bahamas

Over 30 leading groups and individuals campaigning for action on climate change have written to insurance giant Lloyd’s of London demanding that it end support for the Bahamas Petroleum Company to conduct an offshore oil drilling scheme in the pristine waters of The Bahamas. The open letter, which was coordinated by global campaign group SumOfUs …

AIA insurance fully divests from coal

The Insure Our Future network welcomes AIA’s divestment from coal, and calls on other Asian life insurers to follow AIA’s lead. In its new 2020 ESG report, AIA commits to do the following: AIA will divest and/or run off their entire directly managed equity and fixed income exposure to coal mining and coal-fired power businesses …

Swiss Re first insurer to completely phase out coal from treaty reinsurance

Swiss Re, the world’s largest reinsurer, announced new climate targets, including plans for the reinsurer to completely phase-out thermal coal from its treaty business by 2030 (OECD) and 2040 (rest of the world). If implemented properly, this policy shift marks a breakthrough for the reinsurance industry. The Insure Our Future network wrote in early March …

MAPFRE adopts new fossil fuel policy

MAPFRE commits to stop insuring new tar sands, Arctic drilling & coal infrastructure, but remains silent on insurance of other oil and gas expansion Today at its Annual General Meeting, MAPFRE, Spain’s largest non-life insurer and one of Europe’s biggest insurers, formally adopted new commitments to exclude tar sands and Arctic oil & gas production …

Leading European insurers back LNG infrastructure

Urgewald released a report highlighting the European insurance industry’s role in supporting gas infrastructure. The paper, released as part of the Insure Our Future campaign, names Allianz, Talanx, AXA, Generali and Munich Re as key insurers to big fossil gas projects in recent years, such as the Świnoujście, Zeebrugge and Dunkirk liquefied natural gas (LNG) …

Lloyd’s insurer Brit commits to never insure Adani

Major Lloyd’s of London insurance syndicate Brit has committed to never directly insure the Carmichael Coal Project and to not renew insurance involving any associated aspects of the project, most likely referring to the rail line. In an email to Insure Our Future, Brit stated:  Brit does not, has never, and will not write any …

Adani’s coal project exposes yet another risk to insurers: flooding

Adani and its rail line contractors, BMD and Martinus, have failed to prepare for the wet season. Pictures have emerged of substantial flooding on a section of the under-construction rail line to service the proposed Adani Carmichael coal mine in Australia. Lawyers from Environmental Justice Australia (EJA), acting for Mackay Conservation Group (MCG), have written …

Coal exit policies add billions of dollars to insurers’ shareholder value, analyst report suggests

Climate campaigners have pushed insurance companies to exit the coal sector for many years. They have now received support from an unexpected source: financial analysts. “We think the insurance sector’s most important contribution to ESG is exiting coal underwriting”, a recent report issued by the French bank Societe Generale states. “Stopping underwriting coal is particularly …

Can the Premier League’s greenest club find a sponsor which shares its green credentials?

On January 25, 2021, BBC Sport and the Sport Positive Summit named Tottenham Hotspur the Premier League’s greenest club. Congratulations! Can Spurs, which also just signed up to the UN Sports for Climate Action Framework, drop AIA and find a shirt sponsor which shares their commitment to a healthy planet? Ahead of Arsenal, Brighton and …

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