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October 29, 2021

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Lloyd’s joins the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance and becomes part of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero

Lloyd’s, the world’s leading marketplace for commercial, corporate and specialty risk solutions, has today announced it is joining the UN-convened Net Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA), further affirming its commitment to cross industry collaboration to mitigate and manage the impacts of climate change and support the speed of the transition to net zero.

In joining the alliance, the Lloyd’s Corporation* commits to transition all of its operational and attributable greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2050, at the latest. It will also set, publish, and report against, interim science-based targets every 5 years to drive near term action (1).

This builds significantly on Lloyd’s commitment to reduce all the operational emissions at its landmark building in London to net zero before 2025 (2), by setting out further substantive actions across two major levers:

1.         Transitioning Lloyd’s Central Fund to net zero

The Lloyd’s Central Fund (net assets of £3,019m at HY 2021) provides protection for Lloyd’s customers and the market against severe tail end events. In joining the NZIA, Lloyd’s will transition the Central Fund to net zero by 2050, by redirecting capital flows to green investments that enable and accelerate the transition. Lloyd’s will publish a detailed roadmap to achieve this goal within 12 months, drawing on best practice through the Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance and outlining interim 5-year targets.

2.         Leading the Lloyd’s market to a net zero underwriting position

Lloyd’s will advocate and support all market participants to introduce and implement their own net zero plans in order to reach a net zero underwriting position for the market by 2050 at the latest. These new formal expectations will be embedded into the Lloyd’s market oversight framework, putting climate action at the heart of annual business planning cycles with syndicates.

Underpinning this critical development, Lloyd’s is creating a new market-wide ‘Sustainability Transparency and Reporting Regime’ which will be used to measure and report on the market’s progress towards a net zero underwriting position by 2050. The measurement framework will be piloted with a select group of managing agents in 2022, before being refined and scaled across the marketplace in 2023. 

The Transparency and Reporting regime will be aligned with and support the ambitions of the Net Zero Insurance Alliance and Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials (PCAF) to develop a standardised methodology to measure and disclose the GHG emissions of insurance and reinsurance underwriting portfolios, and will help catalyse further action throughout the sector.

By joining the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance, convened by the UN’s Principles for Sustainable Insurance Initiative (PSI), Lloyd’s also becomes part of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ), the UN-backed group for financial institutions to make credible net zero commitments through the UN’s Race to Zero. GFANZ now includes over 250 financial firms from across the entire financial system, which are responsible for assets in excess of $88 trillion and are committed to aligning capital with net zero.

John Neal, CEO of Lloyd’s, said: “We are delighted to join the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance and are fully committed to working collaboratively across the financial sector to achieve its net zero ambition.”

Rebekah Clement, Sustainability Director at Lloyd’s, said: “There is an enormous opportunity for the global insurance industry to step up and support our customers across multiple industries as they transition to a sustainable future.  In addition to setting out our own commitments to help accelerate this process through the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance, Lloyd’s also has a unique role to play in helping individuals, companies and communities across the world increase their resilience, innovate and transition to a low carbon economy.” 

Mark Carney, the UK Prime Minister’s Finance Adviser for COP26, said: “It was in the Lloyd’s building, that I first called on the financial sector to break the ‘tragedy of the horizon’ and confront climate risk before it was too late. I welcome Lloyd’s joining the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance and the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ). By joining the Net Zero Insurance Alliance, the gold standard for net zero commitments and action, Lloyd’s is demonstrating its commitment to net zero and enabling a more resilient, smooth and rapid transition.”

Nigel Topping, UN High-level Climate Action Champion, said: “Achieving net-zero emissions will require transformation across the entire economy.  Insurance will be absolutely critical to enabling that transition and to building resilience to climate shocks. I welcome the ambition from Lloyd’s in leading the Lloyd’s marketplace to a net zero underwriting position by using their influence with market participants to full effect. Industry collaboration will also be essential to turning commitment into implementation and achieving real world outcomes.  We have no time to lose.”

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