Creating a green thread of sustainability within the claims process – Part 2 – What does sustainability mean in insurance repairs?

We face a challenge across the built environment sector: it accounts for about 25% of carbon emissions in the UK, with part of that percentage being building repairs under an insurance claim. We as an industry must strive to reduce these emissions and support the transition to net zero, which the UK government has committed to by 2050.

Insurers are working hard across the insurance sector to decarbonise their investment portfolios over the long term. While they’re successfully reducing carbon emission from their operations, the question remains of what’s next. The real elephant in the room is the carbon generated from building repairs, which dwarfs the emissions from the carbon from business operations. Although there are ongoing discussions about where responsibility for the carbon emissions sits, it’s up to us as an industry to find solutions together.

So, what can surveyors do to reduce the carbon impact of repairs?

Follow the green thread of sustainability all the way through the repair process by:

Maximising Restoration

Tony McAdams talked in the previous blog in the series about the drive to restore more: assuming that restoration might be possible rather than defaulting to replacement. As Tony explained, this takes the right mindset and skills applied to the claim and a desire to challenge the status quo.

 Maximising re-use

This can be building materials / contents / stock etc, which are damaged but have an economic or carbon value. It sounds obvious, but in the UK, we are entrenched in existing practices and far too much still goes to landfill or is incinerated to create electricity — negating this as a really effective  green solution due to the emissions it creates. The assumption is recycling gets done, but this tends to be for what has clear value and is easy to do. We need to start pushing to assume all waste should be recycled, even if it has an additional financial cost. Other countries in Europe are exemplars and we should look towards them for inspiration.

Using low carbon repairs

Alternative low carbon footprint products are being developed (e.g. paint and insulation), where a clear positive impact in reducing carbon can be demonstrated., However, as traditional building products can vary significantly in their carbon footprint, it is difficult to know where to focus your efforts in finding alternative lower carbon products. They key is to understand the typical or benchmark carbon footprint of a building product and then see what options are available which generate lower carbon. We use our bespoke carbon calculator to do this, which works in conjunction with our scheduling system to simplify the process.

However, there is much more to think about than just the carbon impact when making a change

1. When specifying a different product, the normal due diligence is needed to ensure it has all the key performance requirements — fire rating / impact of moisture / energy performance etc.
2. The alternative product may not be exactly the same (e.g. it may be thicker or require different fixings) which will have an impact on the whole design and specification.
3. The cost impact needs to be considered, although there may not be a significant impact, but new niche products tend to be more expensive. 
4. Finally, there is concern emerging about who holds the design liability when specifying new and innovative products, especially when they may not have all the certification of standard products.

Ultimately, it is a delicate balance of all these factors that needs to be considered in finding the right lower carbon repair solution.

Flood resilient repairs

Insurers and industry professionals can also help reduce the carbon footprint of a future flood claim by understanding the positive impact flood resilient repairs can have on future risk and damage. Over the last 5 years there have been improvement in standards and testing, with new Code of Practice, British Standards and improved testing of products. Funding is less of an issue now with the FloodRe Build Back Better Scheme, which is managed by insurers and provides up to £10,000 per flood event to design and install flood resilience products.

But what is the future benefit?

Research by Aviva into the impact of flood resilience, published in their Building Future Communities report, shows restoring a flooded home can create 13.9 tonnes of CO2 emissions (equivalent to six and a half return flights from London to New York). Emissions could be reduced by 64% through installing basic property flood resilience measures.

In summary

There is a need for upskilling our industry to capitalise on opportunities for lower carbon solutions in the repair process. We not only need to have the technical skills, but the ability to engage with customers to help them through the process.

The importance of reducing our carbon impact and increasing our carbon savings will inevitably escalate as the impact of global warming continues to drive extreme weather events. We must work in partnership throughout the supply chain to influence change and make a real difference.