Extinction Rebellion target insurance giants in City of London

October 28, 2024 –
From Socialist Worker (UK)

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On the Extinction Rebellion action against insurance companies (Picture: Guy Smallman)

Climate rebels visited the City of London’s top insurers on Monday to demand they stop supporting environmental destruction.

Extinction Rebellion (XR) wants to stop companies based in London’s financial district from providing insurance to fossil fuel projects. Activists occupied the offices of top insurers Allianz and Hiscox and staged a mass die-in outside the iconic Lloyd’s of London building.

Protester Jamine, who’s originally from Austria, told Socialist Worker she was scared for her family and friends after huge floods in the country this year. “I just want to live in a habitable planet,” she said.

“I’ve been going to protests for quite a while. It’s important to me to make people see and take action.”

Protesters are outraged about the planned construction of an almost 900 mile pipeline from Uganda to Tanzania—the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP).

Nicholas from the End Fossil Occupy Uganda group gave a speech outside Hiscox insurers, which provides coverage for EACOP. He said, “We are going through injustice because of corporations – because of corporate neo-colonialism.

“European countries are profiting from African resources at the expense of people and the planet.

Extinction Rebellion activists, many dressed as suffragettes, protest outside Southwark Crown Court. They hold a banner that reads 'In case of emergency, break glass'

How insurance greases wheels of climate destruction

“In the Niger delta there has been oil drilling since the 1950s. But people are poorest there. Residents have suffered from eating contaminated food. And the same is happening in my country.

“Thousands of people have lost their land and many people have been oppressed because of speaking against this project. It’s all in the name of profit.”

He added, “Companies come with promises of economic development and jobs but they are taking away land from Indigenous people.

“Big banks and insurance companies—all these stakeholders are involved in the destruction of our future.”

Environmentalist John said the protest could pressure insurance companies to act. “They are learning that insuring fossil fuels means that other infrastructure will not work,” he told Socialist Worker.

“Floods and storms will destroy the infrastructure and they will be paying out in infrastructure insurance.”

Kate said, “I can’t believe the corruption in our government—that it won’t do anything. The government needs to lead the way but it is corrupted by the fossil fuel industry. The Labour Party has the money from the oil industry as well.”

Actions against the insurance industry has had an impact. In February, XR blockaded Lloyds and occupied the buildings of other insurance companies including Probitas.

Shortly afterwards, Probitas agreed not to insure EACOP or the West Cumbria coal mine, which was blocked by a High Court judge in September this year. Probitas had already backed out of insuring the Adani coal mine in Australia last year.

The insurance industry trade press has said pressure from environmentalist groups has forced companies to step back from underwriting fossil fuel projects. And campaigners say that fossil fuel bosses are stopping projects because they are not getting insurance.