Optimum West teams with Offsetters to offer carbon-neutral home insurance policy

Optimum West Insurance Company and Offsetters, a carbon management solutions provider based in Vancouver, B.C., have teamed up to bring a home insurance policy to the B.C. marketplace that offsets a household’s annual greenhouse gas emissions.Called the Optimum Green-Home Extension, the carbon-neutral home insurance policy is scheduled to roll out to B.C. homeowners and renters on Mar. 1, 2011. The product extends a conventional home insurance policy with up to $10,000 of additional coverage for the cost difference to replace damaged items with more environmentally friendly alternatives. Applicable to B.C. homeowner, condo and tenant insurance policies, brokers use tables developed by Offsetters to estimate the homeowner’s annual household carbon footprint, which can then be offset. The policy will be available through insurance brokers who offer Optimum West Insurance.