How Crawford & Company created measurable sustainability projects
Crawford & Company has always looked at ways to develop its sustainability programme in line with our most significant community and environmental impacts, taking some of the best ideas from our people.
One noteworthy suggestion came from our in-house subsidence expert, Matt Deller. Subsidence affects thousands of households and businesses in the UK. Claims cost insurers around £400m per year, and 60% to 70% of those claims are considered to be caused by trees and other vegetation.
Many trees are removed to protect properties affected by root damage. But this can have a negative impact on the environment in the communities we serve. Matt’s idea was that we should plant a replacement tree for every one removed as a consequence of subsidence.
We committed to checking each year how many trees were sacrificed and then looked at how we could implement a replacement planting scheme. In partnership with the Woodland Trust, we now ensure that we plant as many as 400 trees a year. In fact, since the initiative first started, we have paid for around 1,300 trees to be planted across the UK.
We link sustainability to HR in a number of ways, including working with insurers that have very strict sustainability targets. Our partnerships with them support our goals. For example, for every 100 Crawford & Company employees who sign up to Zurich’s employee benefits, Zurich plants a tree in Madagascar. Many other programmes that involve employee participation, fairness and equality demonstrate Crawford & Company’s commitment to sustainability.
This case study is taken from the Sustainability is driving business change - Transforming Engagement Series 2022 report 4.
