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The B-Corp Journey, taking steps on the road to better business

Posted on by ob-dev

When we started Aspect two years ago, our aim was simple. We saw many viable, mid-market companies  being underserved by the insurance industry. We saw many businesses that could previously access quality coverage suddenly locked out and struggling to secure insurance and we didn’t think this was right. 

In short, we felt the market could do better and we built Aspect to do just that. 

Doing the right thing is about more than just business however and we are determined to build a company that our employees and policyholders can be proud of. We want Aspect to be a force for good and a responsible corporate citizen. We’ve already taken a number of steps in this direction.

As a Living Wage Employer for example, we’re ensuring our employees are paid fairly for their work and feel valued and respected. Likewise, we’re putting our belief in the power of giving back into action through charity partnerships and encouraging our team to get involved and volunteer. We see this as a way to not only tackle important social issues but also inspire our team to take pride in their contributions to the greater good. 

This is integral to our company values and a key driver of our long term success and the motivation of our employees. It’s for this reason that we’re today pleased to announce that our team has been busy behind the scenes taking us on the journey toward B-Corp status. 

The journey so far

As far as we know, we’re breaking new ground here and when we achieve B-Corp we’ll be the first London Market MGA to do so. This is therefore an important step for us and for the wider industry. 

Our journey began with a scoping exercise to work out what’s involved in becoming a B-Corp and to speak to some other businesses who’ve already made the journey. The entire purpose of the B-Corp movement is to show that business not only should be done better, but can be done better. Trust is crucial to this however. We’ve seen in recent years how issues like ‘greenwashing’ have served to undermine public confidence in ESG. To mitigate against this, the process of becoming B-Corp has been designed to be deliberately meticulous. 

Our research and conversations have given us a realistic roadmap and so, we’ve since taken a number of steps that support our B-Corp ambition. 

This has included developing our 2025 Giving Strategy with the assistance of the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF). This has helped us reinforce our commitment to corporate social responsibility and clarify our goals for the year, as well as selecting charities we will support.

We’ve also begun our B Impact Assessment, securing the preliminary 80 points required for certification—while continuing to refine our approach to maximise our score before submission. 

In line with our remuneration policy described above, we’re also proud to have earned Living Wage Employer accreditation, which we believe will further enhance our B-Corp journey.

More broadly, we’ve taken action as a business and as a team to strengthen transparency and accountability while implementing new well-being initiatives and employee benefits and reviewing our partnerships to focus on working with organisations that prioritise sustainability and social awareness. 

Starting our own MGA was driven by a desire to make a real impact in the insurance space that goes above and beyond just business. The B-Corp journey is our way of demonstrating to our customers and the industry what an MGA can be.

Keep an eye on our website for further updates and for further information.

ESG Data

Posted on by ob-dev

This week we’re exploring the ways in which Aspect is challenging ourselves and the wider insurance industry to deliver better corporate citizenship. So far, we’ve announced exciting initiatives alongside the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation and the Living Wage Foundation and, there’s more to come later this week so stay tuned!

Today however, we want to look back at some of the work we’ve already done as we seek to do things differently and make an impact.

Putting down roots

First up, reflecting the commitment felt by the whole Aspect team to our shared environment, we’ve worked hard to build a greener industry. Since January 2024, with Treeapp, our team has planted 1,334 trees (and counting!). This not only means a greener and more pleasant environment, it also means our trees have pulled more than 145 tonnes of CO2 out of the atmosphere. 

Planting these trees has also generated 13 days of paid work for the communities in which we’ve planted them and has contributed to the reforestation of nearly 9,000 m2 of land. 

Separately, we’ve also partnered with OnHand over the past twelve months to plant 594 trees through 734 hours of volunteering which has also seen 2.5 megatonnes of CO2 mitigated.

Greener business

Alongside supporting reforestation in communities globally, at Aspect we’re also on a mission to ensure our own business is as sustainable as possible. 

To that end, we recycled half a ton of our business waste last year. This included 375kg of waste recycled via energy from waste and 250kg via anaerobic digestion. All of which generated 206.26 kWH of energy. Our switch to Google Workspace has also allowed us to save a further 84.69kg of CO2e.

As a business too, we run towards the risks that much of the insurance industry would rather avoid. We see delivering the green energy that the future demands as one of the greatest challenges we face. Delivering a sustainable economy necessarily means investing in and developing new technologies and sources of power. For many, this means higher risk, but we were built to do things differently and find ways to help the renewable sector manage its risk while pushing forward with the vital innovation we need. Over the course of 2024, we found solutions for 27 clients in the renewable energy sector and we hope to continue building on this as we support the ambition to build a net-zero economy. 

Giving back 

Finally, over the last 12 months, we’ve come together as a team to try and give back financially too. We allocate 1% of our revenue to an ‘impact pot’ which will be used to support the causes we care about. Alongside this, last year we donated £10,500 to charities and spent a further £5,000 on partnerships with charitable initiatives. We also supported 2 children who need it most in Nicaragua with hot meals, education, stationery and health assistance.

These are small steps, but we’re proud of them and we thank our customers and our team for helping us take them.  

Living Wage Foundation

Posted on by ob-dev

Yesterday we announced our partnership with the IICF which we hope will help us make an ever more positive impact on communities across the UK. 

One of the biggest positive impacts a business can have however, is on its own employees. 

Employees give a huge amount of their time and effort to the companies they work for. All too often however, pay and conditions aren’t keeping pace with broader circumstances in the economy. Recent years have seen inflation taking a bite out of people’s earning power for example while tax rises and the cost of living are also making life ever harder for working age people. 

This is especially the case here in London, where Aspect is based. 

We want to make sure our employees are paid a wage that not only reflects their talent and hard-work, but also that allows for the quality of life that we all deserve. That’s why today we’re pleased to announce that Aspect is now a living wage employer, as accredited by the Living Wage Foundation. 

What is the living wage?

Unlike the minimum wage, the Living Wage is based on the cost of living and has therefore risen above the minimum wage as the cost of living and inflation have taken their toll on workers across the UK. 

While the minimum wage is a legal requirement of employers, the Living Wage is something that employers sign up to voluntarily and Aspect is proud to join the 15,000 other businesses across the country who have also become Living Wage employers. To date nearly half a million employees have received a pay rise and found life a little more affordable as a result of the hard work of the Living Wage Foundation. 

Why have we signed up?

As mentioned yesterday in our post about our membership of the IICF, when we set out to build Aspect we set out to take a different approach that gives businesses that’ve been underserved by the market the insurance they deserve. This approach extends to the communities we work with which is why we are partnering with the IICF. It also extends to our team. Without the hard work of our team, we wouldn’t have a business. Our team give their best day in day out and who have contributed to bringing Aspect to where it is today so, it’s only right that as a business we give something back. 

We feel this will make their lives easier and set a challenge to other businesses, in insurance and beyond, to sign up to the Living Wage and give Britain a pay-rise. You can find out more about the Living Wage Foundation here.  

Sebastian Bachelier, Senior Partnerships & Campaigns Manager said: 

“We are pleased to welcome Aspect into the Living Wage Community. Businesses like Aspect that are willing to show leadership on this issue are vital to raising the bar for other businesses and taking some of the pressure off employees following years of inflation and cost-of-living price rises. This is a vital step towards responsible corporate citizenship and towards a robust and sustainable ESG policy.” 

“Businesses signing up to the Living Wage Foundation have already given half a million people a pay-rise and, with the support of businesses like Aspect, we hope to go even further as we campaign for a Living Wage for all.”

Associate Membership of the IICF

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We set up Aspect to make a difference. Not just to the customers we work with and the many businesses that we see being underserved by the wider insurance industry, but also to wider society.

There are a whole range of challenges that we collectively face and in which the insurance industry has a role to play. From helping communities and businesses adapt to and mitigate the risks posed by climate change to supporting disadvantaged kids in the UK, we want to build not just a business but a good corporate citizen. 

We are therefore proud to announce that we have today become associate members of the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF). The IICF brings the insurance industry together to help support communities across the UK. Since launching in 2015, the IICF has had a positive impact on the lives of more than 7,000 people and has brought together more than 2000 leaders from the industry to help drive positive change. 

In particular, IICF is focused on the ‘S’ in ESG, and is supporting initiatives aimed at increasing social mobility and allowing everyone to reach their full potential, regardless of their background. 

This is something that chimes hugely with the team here at Aspect. 

Previously our team has taken part in initiatives ranging from helping support homeless people in Luxembourg with hot and healthy meals to supporting vulnerable families in the Nordelta neighbourhood of Buenos Aires. There’s always more to do however and, as our business continues to grow, we keen to lean into the expertise of the IICF and their partnerships to help us reach ever more people and give back. 

Wendy Wilder, Executive Director at IICF UK said: 

“The insurance industry can make a real difference in fostering greater social mobility in the UK and ensuring that everyone has a chance to succeed, no matter their starting point in life.” 

“As we welcome new corporate partners, it’s exciting to see more insurance leaders recognising that we can create greater social impact together as an industry. Aspect in particular is a team that believes the industry can do better, and their partnership with the IICF indicates that this means going beyond business to achieve a positive social impact.” 

“We look forward to working with the team at Aspect towards our shared goal of helping communities and enriching lives together.”

Find out more about the IICF here and more about our own approach to social impact here. If you’d like to find out more or even get involved, then reach out to impact@aspect.insure

Innovative MGA, Aspect, launches refreshed brand and expanded offering to brokers at this year’s MGAA Broker Exchange

Posted on by ob-dev
  • Strengthened branding, website and brochure launched to coincide with MGAA Broker Exchange
  • Aspect also announces increase in property underwriting line-size with additional capacity from Lloyds’ syndicates alongside capacity for Property Owners Liability
  • Brand launch reflects the team’s ambition to become the go-to player for brokers with high-hazard mid-market business.

From a stand at this year’s Managing General Agents Association (MGAA) Broker Exchange in London Aspect, the specialist MGA, today announces a refreshed brand and broader range of product capabilities. 

Aspect unveiled a new website to brokers at the MGAA, as the team also announced a widening of underwriting capabilities. Aspect can now underwrite property risks with a line size of up to £19 million, a dramatic increase on the £3 million limit seen at launch in 2023. 

Additionally, Aspect now has a combined offering with Property Owners’ Liability also available in the UK and Ireland, and EL/PL/Products coming next month. 

The expanded product offering that Aspect is making available to brokers follows a strong 2024 for the start-up which saw GWP growth approaching 50%, to reach almost £25 million annually, and the inking of several capacity deals with Lloyds’ syndicates. 

The high-hazard specialists have worked closely with brokers to remove key pain points from placements including a streamlined claims handling process, to enable lower deductibles, and waiving all risk survey fees. 

Aspect is quickly making a name for itself in the industry as a team of specialist underwriters that run toward the risks that others shy away from. Recent months have seen Aspect write risks ranging from pallet manufactures in Belgium to a pilot project for hydrogen power in Birmingham, and from recycling contractors in the Netherlands to distressed residential units in Nottingham.  

With the new brand and deeper product capabilities, Aspect has a bold ambition to become the insurer of choice for a range of high-hazard mid-market businesses. To deliver this, Aspect has built a dedicated team internally to solely work on developing a number of tech solutions designed to make broker’s lives easier and streamline decision making. 

Commenting from the MGAA Broker Exchange, Oli Williamson, Co-Founder and Chief Underwriting Officer at Aspect said: 

“In many ways the insurance industry has yet to catch-up with a whole range of dynamics. Whether it’s an unwillingness to consider prototype projects that support the transition to a net zero economy or to grapple with the current realities around housing for asylum seekers, the industry is proving slow to adapt.”

“This is leaving many vital businesses struggling for cover. Our book is growing off the back of our willingness to run toward the risks that the rest of the industry won’t and back the many thousands of mid-market customers out there working in high-risk sectors and lacking the comprehensive cover they need to succeed and drive economic growth across the UK and Europe.”

“With our refreshed brand, we’re signalling our ambition to become the insurer of choice for high-hazard mid-market businesses and offer a streamlined, service-focussed approach to underwriting that judges each risk on its merits, which is currently missing from the market.”

ENDS

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Liam Thompson
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www.roselygroup.com/