Insurers re-evaluate ESG standards (2023)
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Insurers are re-evaluating their affiliations with international climate change organizations and their acceptance of ESG standards, citing legal threats from governments. While the governments in question have not been named specifically, some observers think state opposition to ESG could be contributing to the re-calculation:
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Insurers are being forced to rethink their approach to climate change as they assess the risk of being sued for antitrust violations. Munich Re, the world’s biggest reinsurer, recently backed out of the Net Zero Insurance Alliance citing what it called the “material” legal risks it would face if it remained. The defection was followed by two more high-profile departures, with Zurich Insurance Group AG and Hannover Re also leaving. All three said they’ll still pursue net zero goals, just not in coordination with an alliance. There are now concerns that more exits may follow. A spokesman for Scor SE said the firm’s NZIA membership is currently “being reviewed by the group’s executive committee and board.” Spokespeople for Allianz SE and Swiss Re AG both said the companies are “monitoring” developments. Though Munich Re was unique in its explicit reference to legal risks, NZIA’s sudden loss of three key members has left the insurance industry looking like a casualty of the anti-ESG movement in the US. Insurers’ extra sensitivity about antitrust issues may be tied to the sector’s “occupational habit” of trying to anticipate risks, said Maurits Dolmans, a partner at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP who advises Race to Zero, a group that’s affiliated with NZIA and other climate alliances. Alec Burnside, a partner at Dechert LLP in Brussels who specializes in competition law, says the firms most susceptible to the threat of litigation are those with large US operations…. “Companies that are exiting climate alliances have a practical interest in not getting into an ESG-wokeism slanging match with antitrust as one of the weapons that’s used against them,” Burnside said. “One way to keep your head down amid all the backlash against ESG is to say ‘we remain wedded to sustainability goals, but we are pursuing them unilaterally.’”[1] |
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See also
- Environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)
- Economy and Society: Ballotpedia's ESG newsletter
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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