Climate campaigners from the Stop Adani campaign and Pacific Climate Warriors joined forces October 27 and 28 to call on Lloyd’s of London and its members to follow the lead of 23 major insurance companies, including several Lloyd’s syndicates, and stop insuring Adani’s Carmichael coal project in Australia.
If built, Adani’s Carmichael mine will, amongst a range of other serious negative impacts, add an estimated 4.6 billion tonnes of carbon pollution to our atmosphere over its lifetime.
Lloyd’s has confirmed that some of its members started insuring Adani’s coal mine in 2019 but refuses to name the members involved. Lloyd’s also so far refuses to put in place a market wide policy excluding all of its members from insuring new coal mines, despite the climate science and the fact that most other leading insurers have such a policy in place.
Evidence that Lloyd’s member Aspen was involved came to light in June. When confronted, Aspen quickly responded that it understands the importance of environmental, social, and governance issues and therefore will not be renewing any insurance policies associated with the Adani Carmichael mine. Other Lloyd’s members including Allied World, Argo group and CNA Hardy have also recently made clear that they are not involved with Adani’s mine.
Exactly which Lloyd’s members are still insuring or plan to insure Adani is unclear and the subject of significant interest and concern. The Stop Adani campaign has been contacting Lloyd’s members one by one to rule them out and is now focused on a number of remaining members including Apollo, Arch, Brit, Hamilton Group, STARR, Lancashire, MAP and WR Berkley.
In response to Lloyd’s involvement in the Adani coal mine, two actions will take place next week. On October 27, volunteers with the Insure our Future campaign will deliver two giant postcards to Lloyd’s CEO John Neal at Lloyd’s London HQ, on behalf of the Stop Adani campaign and the Pacific Climate Warriors. On October 28, the Stop Adani campaign and Pacific Climate Warriors will co-host an online rally during which 500+ participants are expected to take part in a series of social and digital actions asking Lloyd’s and its members to insure our future not Adani’s coal.
"Lloyd’s of London is profiting from climate destruction by providing morally bankrupt companies like Adani with insurance. Adani’s climate wrecking coal project is a reputational disaster for companies who associate with it, that’s why 24 major insurers have taken a stand and publicly ruled out insurance for Adani, Lloyd’s must follow their lead and stop insuring Adani.”
"Lloyd’s of London is supporting destructive coal projects like Adani’s coal mine that are driving the climate crisis. Mining and burning coal from Adani’s mega mine will wreck our chance to protect our Pacific homelands from climate impacts. We are people who are living the realities of climate change right now. As Pacific people, we will continue to fight for our homes, our ways of life and our communities. We demand that Lloyd’s starts acting to protect the Pacific and show leadership in insurance marketing by ruling out insurance for Adani.”
"It is time for Lloyd’s to put in place regulations that commit all of Lloyd’s market members to not insuring the Adani Carmichael coal mine, as part of a broader policy that moves Lloyd’s and its members away from insuring the fossil fuel projects that are driving climate change.”
