Sustainability risk management

Risk management is an integral part of Swiss Re’s business model and key to the controlled risk-taking that underpins Swiss Re’s financial strength. We identify, assess and address environmental, social and governance factors, alongside other business-relevant factors, in our underwriting and investments, including through the company’s ESG Risk Framework.

ESG Risk Framework

Swiss Re’s ESG Risk Framework guides how the Group manages sustainability risks and is applied in conjunction with other Group-wide frameworks. 

Umbrella guidelines

The ESG Risk Framework consists of three umbrella guidelines based on the overarching principles of protecting the environment, respecting human rights and promoting good corporate governance. These guidelines are designed to support Swiss Re’s efforts to identify and manage existing and potential environmental, social/human rights and governance-related risks. The umbrella guidelines also provide the basis for preventing, mitigating and managing these risks through engagement and risk-based restrictions.

• Environmental Umbrella Guideline 
• Social/Human Rights Umbrella Guideline 
• Governance Umbrella Guideline 

Swiss Re aims to apply the ESG Risk Framework to all activities undertaken by Swiss Re Group entities, where information granularity is available and allows for a meaningful ESG risk assessment. In cases where applicable laws, rules and regulations conflict with Swiss Re‘s ESG Risk Framework, Swiss Re seeks to honour it in a manner that is consistent with the applicable laws, rules and regulations.​

For underwriting, the framework is implemented through a sustainability risk management process, consisting of three elements: 

• ESG risk assessment 
• ESG risk referral 
• Potential escalation (appeals procedure)

The following diagram provides an overview of the sustainability risk management process:

For details on the ESG Risk Framework and how we implement it, download the ESG Risk Framework publication.