The Environmental Liability Directive (ELD) was the central topic of a workshop jointly organized by UNSAR – The Romanian Insurers’ Association – and HAIC, the Hellenic Association of Insurance Companies. The event took place in Bucharest as part of the European LIFE PROFILE project, which aims to strengthen the financial protection mechanisms supporting environmental remediation.

With the ELD designed to make polluters financially accountable for environmental damage, financial security instruments — including insurance — are expected to play a critical role in achieving real environmental restoration. Opening remarks were delivered by Alexandru Ciuncan, President of UNSAR, and Sandra Kokonetsi, Head of Communications at HAIC. The event was moderated by Daniela Ghetu from XPRIMM Publications.

The workshop provided an important opportunity for knowledge exchange and sharing best practices to advance insurers’ involvement in environmental liability. Sorin Mititelu, Vice President of ASF – the Romanian Financial Supervisory Authority – emphasized that Romania is still at an early stage in the process:

“Across the full operational chain — from collecting and managing relevant data to educating economic operators about the implications of the ELD and the support the insurance industry can provide — we still have many steps ahead.”
He also highlighted the need for dedicated product managers in every insurance company to accelerate progress in this area.

From a market-driven perspective, Victor Sraer — Head of International Affairs for UNSICAR, the Romanian insurance brokers professional association -, and CEO of OTTO Broker — underlined the benefits of natural market development over imposing compulsory insurance too early:

“Environmental liability insurance is a strong expression of social responsibility and should be encouraged by authorities when viewed from this perspective.”
Romania already offers insurance solutions for accidental pollution, but several challenges still need to be addressed to ensure the successful implementation of the ELD and a meaningful involvement of insurers.

Government representatives Gabriela Osiceanu (Romania) and Stavroula Pouli (Greece), both from their respective Ministries of Environment, provided insight into the current status of ELD implementation and the data their institutions can offer to support underwriting processes for this complex risk category.

A key focus of the workshop was the demonstration of SAFER IT, a digital tool for environmental risk assessment and management developed by the Laboratory of Operational Research & Logistics within the National Technical University of Athens. The system can be replicated for use in other countries and supports the estimation of potential environmental damage using an extensive environmental database and multiple industry-adapted risk scenarios.

This Bucharest workshop marked the third dissemination event of the LIFE PROFILE project, after similar sessions in Cyprus and Italy. The initiative reinforces the importance of financial security instruments in protecting the environment and in ensuring the effective implementation of the Environmental Liability Directive.