ESG
A clear social purpose, backed by environmental action and strong governance...
LiveMore is your sustainable lender.
We were founded with a social mission to provide mortgage finance for people in later life, who are too often underserved by high street lenders. With our support for sustainable housing and our commitment to become a carbon-negative business, we reflect the environmental priorities of our employees and customers. And our lending practices meet the very highest market standards, so that you, our borrowers, are always protected.
Environmental
Quite simply, sustainable housing matters...
We incentivise the purchase of energy-efficient properties, as well as the improvement of environmental performance in existing buildings. We are even looking to develop green mortgage products for this purpose, so watch this space.
We collect EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) data on properties we lend to, as part of our fact-finding process. We engage with our customers to discuss EPC ratings and support mortgages for energy-efficient home improvements.
Climate action starts at home
- In our aspiration to be recognised as a carbon-neutral business, we use the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol Corporate Standard for operational greenhouse accounting and reporting.
- Did you know that we support the Trillion Trees initiative? This united force – which combines the power of BirdLife International, Wildlife Conservation Society and WWF – protects and restores the world’s forests, based on science and proven impact. Our contribution to date (May 2023) of 2750 trees, is equivalent to 1,705 tons of CO2 removal, or 4,125,000 miles driven. Our impact and milestones are reported annually.
- In our London and Bristol offices, our teams champion energy-saving initiatives to reduce our carbon footprint. We actively promote recycling, hybrid working, reduced use of electricity and paperless operations in our daily operations. You can monitor our progress against measurable targets in our annual reports.
Social
We passionately believe that a mortgage has a positive social impact...
LiveMore was created to bridge a gap in society caused by the shortfall in quality mortgage finance for later life borrowers. We are 100% focused on borrowers aged 50-90+, offering innovative products to meet your specific needs.
Going the extra mile:
- Our products improve financial inclusion for an underserved target group as defined in the ICMA (International Capital Markets Association) Social Bond Principles (2021).
- Our products support socioeconomic advancement and empowerment (access to and control over assets and services) for aging populations as defined in the ICMA Social Bond Principles (2021).
- Reducing inequalities in housing through provision of finance access, while improving the livelihoods of those older borrowers whose wellbeing is closely connected to staying in their own home.
- A manual underwriting approach that seeks to understand the individual’s circumstances, which sets us apart from other more rigid underwriting processes.
- Our Vulnerable Customer Policy is designed to identify and address customer vulnerability throughout the life of their relationship with LiveMore. This unique approach to tackling vulnerability is monitored and reviewed by our Vulnerable Customer Committee, which meets monthly.
100% of our lending serves a group of social borrowers (underserved ageing population) as defined in the ICMA Social Bond Principles 2021. Our products contribute to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Targets 10.2 and 10.3, “Reducing Inequalities”.
And we love looking out for our own people too...
- As a fast-growing business we rely on a strong workforce. We measure employee wellbeing in quarterly surveys – and aim to increase and report on the overall wellbeing score twice a year.
- LiveMore is committed to flexible and remote/hybrid work through all employment agreements.
- We are building an inclusive culture through our Equality and Diversity Policy, and set measurable targets for gender equality, which will be reviewed annually.
- All our people are trained on regulatory and practical matters including ESG matters to create awareness throughout the workforce.
Governance
A strong governance foundation...
We know that governance policy isn't always the most exciting of topics, but for us, it forms the cornerstone in how we protect our customers:
- Our Credit and Responsible Lending Policy is aligned with best market practices.
- Customers benefit from the robust governance and reporting structure of an FCA-approved company with strong corporate risk management.
- LiveMore complies with the SMCR (Senior Management and Certification Regime) of the FCA.
- We have strong data protection policies to safeguard our customers, alongside Cyber Essentials accreditation, as part of our overall strategy of data protection.
- We have a designated committee structure across the business, including Conduct, Risk & Compliance committees.
- Internal training is provided to our people to address governance, compliance and culture frameworks, while external training is used as appropriate for specific requirements (e.g., specific FCA responsibilities).
LiveMore also has a sound management and governance framework with various levels of management meetings as well as Board and Board Committee meetings throughout the year. The timing of these has been disrupted by COVID, but we look forward to resuming a more regular schedule.
In addition, we manage risk through adherence to regulatory, data protection and other methods. As a small business, we seek to maintain superior levels of communication and transparency through constant open dialogue, while also maintaining the discipline of Board and Board Committee meetings.
The Board also benefits from its Advisory Board members, each of whom bring specific relevant skills and depth of knowledge and experience to our business.