From Covid-19 Support Fund to NHS donations and community schemes, here are some of the highlights
The protection and health insurance industry has worked hard during the Covid-19 pandemic, launching initiatives to make sure clients are able to get on-risk and to claim despite a new and unique health crisis emerging.
Many companies from advisers and tech providers, to insurers, reinsurers and trade bodies have also been contributing to charitable causes and, while we can't mention everything that every company has done, here are a few highlights.
The UK insurance and long-term savings industry, including members of the Association of British Insurers (ABI), has launched the Covid-19 Support Fund to help support some of the people hardest hit by the Covid-19 crisis. The Covid-19 Support Fund has raised almost £84m in contributions from over 30 firms within the sector. Supporter include those who provide protection products. The Covid-19 Support Fund has partnered with the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF), who will help get these vital funds quickly and safely into the hands of charities supporting people most affected.
LifeSearch raised over £39k for three charities over 10 weeks - NHS Charities Together, Florence Nightingale Foundation and Roald Dahl's Marvellous Children's Charity - by making a £5 donation for every family protected. Assured Futures advisers supported Sunflowers Suicide Support, a local charity in Gloucestershire, and fundraising activity over the pandemic period has totalled over £500. Cura has donated to over 10 different charities since the Covid outbreak.
The Wesleyan Foundation has gifted over £100,000 to multiple charities and organisations supporting the mental health needs of key workers as well as supporting the Coronavirus Resilience Fund. So far in 2020, The Exeter has donated over £40,000 to charities and community projects. During the Covid-19 lockdown in particular, The Exeter's employees raised over £8,000 in support of the NHS. Shepherds Friendly raised £260 for charity and donated a bundle of Easter Eggs to Seashell Trust handing them out to the children and adults who remained in the charity's care and couldn't return home.
Aegon UK donated supplies to NHS hospitals across UK and made a £250,000 donation to support charities through coronavirus. Zurich also donated medical equipment - 350,000 surgical masks to hospitals, hospices, air ambulance, police and health centres - and the business has also made a £13 million donation to the UK insurance and long-term savings industry's Covid-19 support fund to help people hardest hit by the crisis.
Royal London also made donations to each of their six local charity partners, as well as Silverline, a long-standing national charity partner, and diverted £400k from the Royal London Foundation to National Emergencies Trust.
Cash plan provider Health Shield offered 12 months' free access to its NHS-approved Thrive mental health app to local key workers, charities and students. They wanted to reach those most affected by the pandemic and most in need of additional mental health support. Up to July 22, 2020 they had received - and met - 34,041 requests.
In June, Vitality director of specialist health sales and dedicated distribution, Athos Rushovich and his son, Thomas, ran 100 miles over the course of a week to raise over £2,900 for Ladles of Love, a charity in Cape Town that feeds hungry people, many of whom are paid daily and severely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. In order to hit the 100 mile target, Athos and his son had to average 14 miles a day - sometimes running multiple times a day - and pushed through ITB pain, blisters and very hot days. Some days they ran long in the morning followed by short in the evening, then short the next morning and long in the evening in order to maximise recovery between long runs. They completed the challenge with the last 11 miles along the Thames, followed by a swim and a cold beer.
At the time, Athos Rushovich said: "I am enjoying a well-earned rest having completed the 100 mile challenge. In order to remain motivated and keep running day after day, I developed a plan and made sure I stuck to it. To anyone else looking to do the same, I'd recommend planning the route and daily mileage as well as factoring in time for recovery. I also believe managing nutrition and hydration is as important as the distance.
"I'm extremely thankful to those who have helped raise money for such an important cause, and I'm proud that I have been able to make a difference by taking part in this challenge, and staying active during lockdown."
Through its Community Programme, Bradford-based cash plan provider Sovereign Health Care aims to donate between five and 10 per cent of its annual turnover to good causes. In 2020, over £256,000 has been earmarked for the local NHS Trusts that Sovereign supports, this is in addition to £160,000 given in the first half of 2020, including over £25,000 for COVID-19 emergency support.
Another firm that donated medical equipment is Generali UK Employee Benefits which partnered with manufacturing firm Filmtronics Ltd to create 10,000 face shields that were donated to local NHS hospitals in London.
On the reinsurance side, Pacific Life Re staff have raised over £3,000 for the National Emergencies Trust and £1,620 for Opening Doors London (including 100% company matching)
HCB Group staff have been active in helping Covid healthcare. Several of their nurses have returned to the NHS, working on the frontline in hospitals, including head of clinical services, Chrissy Clark, who worked full time with HCB and then has spent one day of the weekend working on one of the Covid-19 wards at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.
UnderwriteMe senior management team (UK) took part in their very own version of the 2.6 Challenge in April. Their aim was to raise money for the NHS Charites Together and the team raised £3,142 for the charity.
