Creating a green thread of sustainability within the claims process – Part 1 – Mitigation

Often, an insurer’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals can be at odds with the priorities of home and business owners reporting a loss, particularly when they are dealing with the stress of an incident. But it is important to understand that a green thread of sustainability can be created during the adjusting and recovery process, which can save time and money. 

So where does the green thread start?

Acting sustainably occurs when all parties commit to making a positive change and at Sedgwick, we aim to bring that to life when dealing with claims.

When a loss occurs, our Damage Management and Sustainability consultants pick up the green thread on site. Using decades of accumulated skills, knowledge, and experience, they rapidly identify the exact nature, extent, and severity of the damage, and promote bespoke mitigation solutions that minimises both financial exposure and the claim’s carbon footprint. 

Time is of the essence

Simple solutions that are acted upon in a timely manner can make all the difference. 

In the immediate aftermath of a fire or flood, secondary damage can start to occur, be that mould contamination from water damage, or corrosion from smoke contamination. 

When water damage occurs building materials, such as plasterboard and composite timber board, can be particularly susceptible to mould contamination, which can occur within a few days of the incident. If mould contamination takes hold, cutting out the affected building materials can be expensive, wasteful and create a significant increase in the claim’s carbon footprint via the manufacture and transportation of replacement building materials.

However, this type of damage can be prevented. Some simple solutions such as moving contents away from the walls, releasing skirting boards and increasing air flow through the building can delay the onset of mould for enough time for a bespoke, energy efficient, drying system to be installed that removes the moisture that mould requires to thrive on. 

If the conditions are suitable, even simply opening windows can create sufficient time to establish a damage mitigation plan and act.

By instructing our Damage Management and Sustainability consultants’ early in the process, it enables businesses and homeowners to make better informed decisions. 

A broader outlook

There is a tendency to stick to what we know, and this is particularly the case when it comes to restoration. While many of the same traditional practices remain, having a broader outlook and the right guidance gives light to alternative processes. 

Some common questions we ask include:

1. When flooding occurs, do all materials need to be force dried, or can some materials be left to dry naturally, without any detrimental effects, thereby reducing the electricity usage, with its associated cost and carbon footprint? 
2. Do all mould affected materials need to be stripped out, or if restoration is prescribed, how can the restoration process be demonstrated to be safe and successful?
3. Can damaged contents or materials be restored, salvaged, repurposed, or recycled?
4. Has future loss prevention been considered in the restoration and repair processes?
5. If building materials are damaged, can alternative, lower carbon footprint, repair materials be used, and are they cost effective and readily available?
6. Does the client have their own ESG goals e.g. installing solar panels, which can be incorporated within the repair process.

By way of example of thinking more laterally, a restoration technique that is used in one industry that could benefit another would be sponge blasting, which is, as the name implies, blast cleaning with sponge particles. This restoration method is predominantly used to blast individual layers of paint from aircraft wings without causing damage to the lightweight alloy material and without causing the excessive dust that would ordinarily prevent access to the work area. However, there is certainly a wider use for this type of process, such as being used in the restoration of an industrial building or a machine operating on a production line. 

Our Damage Management and Sustainability consultants use the latest technologies to review cases as a collective to share and combine their knowledge and experience, to evaluate the multitude of restoration and repair options with the goal of restoring more and discarding less. This approach enables stakeholders to make more informed decisions at those crucial early moments, which can significantly reduce the cost and carbon footprint of a claim.

In our next blog we will discuss how our surveyors use low-carbon repair materials and practices, flood-recoverable materials, and flood resilience in building reinstatement.