Aviva Group Ireland plc is committed to protecting our environment

Aviva Group Ireland plc works in a number of ways to reduce emissions and play its part in protecting our environment.

Following the recent introduction of the National Climate Change Strategy 2007 – 2012 we will continue to introduce initiatives within our own business. We will also introduce innovative solutions that will drive down premiums to encourage our customers to play their part.

Employing over 2,000 staff, Aviva Group Ireland plc takes its responsibility to reduce CO2 emissions very seriously and from 2004 – 2006 we have reduced emissions from 5,100 tonnes per annum to 1,025 tonnes. In our workplace we are:

Managing our waste

• Introduced recycling to all our offices over 3 years ago – 52% of our waste was recycled in 2006.
• Introduced biodegradable water cups.
• We reduced our paper consumption by 15% as a result of a new print management strategy.

Changing the way we travel

• Encourage our staff to travel less for meetings by using video conferencing and WebEx conferencing facilities.
• Introduced a scheme to provide senior staff with a yearly commuter ticket rather than drive to work.

Creating eco-friendly office buildings

• Moved all our head office operations to one environmentally friendly building – energy efficient with all furniture and carpet recyclable.
• New print stations have replaced 400 printers and copiers with just 46 devices, saving paper and power

Committed to be carbon neutral

Together with our parent Aviva we have had schemes in place to reduce our CO2 output for some time. Those efforts will continue, but we also recognise that we cannot remove our carbon footprint altogether. In 2006, Aviva committed to become the first carbon neutral insurer covering worldwide operations.

The focus in 2007 is on making that happen. As part of this process, Aviva calculated its worldwide emissions (verified by an external source) and selected a number of offsetting projects from two providers – Climate Care and CarbonAided. The projects have a global focus, selected in countries where Aviva companies operate, and provide a balance between commercial and social initiatives. One of the projects is the Irish green cement supplier EcoCem.

Minimising emissions locally in the long term

The focus for the long-term is to continue to minimise emissions locally. Over the last two years, Aviva Group Ireland plc has reduced its emissions from 5100 tonnes to 1025 tonnes. It was a strategic imperative of our move to one group corporate headquarters late last year that we become as carbon efficient as possible. The fit out comprised recyclable materials, fixtures are energy efficient and waste reduction implemented with improved print and energy management. In fact, reducing waste is a well-established part of how we do things with a recycling programme in operation for a number of years. Another strategic objective is to reward our customers who play their part too.

Rewarding energy-efficient car insurance customers

Aviva Group Ireland plc Motoring Report 2007 told us the car plays a crucial role in our society with nearly half of all households owning two or more cars and perhaps more interestingly, one third with three cars or more.

Three-quarters of these cars are petrol-powered proving biofuel and other alternative fuels are still to make their mark with Irish drivers, with only one car in 100 powered by a fuel other than petrol or diesel. This coupled with figures that show more than half of the cars on Irish roads are more than five years old, the industry view is that incentivising motorists is the only way to ensure the required reduction in emissions.

Aviva Group Ireland plc plays its part by rewarding customers who choose more CO2 efficient vehicles with premiums reduced by 15% for manufactured hybrid and bio-fuel powered cars.

About Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) funds

Aviva Investors offer our customers’ access to Socially Responsible Investment funds by investing in sustainable companies. The companies invested in undergo rigorous assessment by our fund management team based in our sister company, Morley Fund Management in London to ensure they match our investment philosophy. Sustainable development is a major economic trend and companies moving with this trend will be more profitable thereby making better investments.

As a major shareholder in these companies Morley pride themselves on playing an active role to use their influence to improve ethical and socially responsible behaviour within those companies. Good examples include Irish company, Kingspan. These funds have €1.3bn under management and are available to all types of investors.

Together with our parent, Aviva, we have a long-term responsibility to manage and reduce our impact on the environment. In 2006, Aviva responded to climate change by making a commitment to be the first carbon neutral insurer covering worldwide operations. The focus in 2007 is making that happen.