November 12, 2020
12 November 2020
The fourth annual Handitech Awards will be presented on 16-19 November, during the European Disability Employment Week. For the third consecutive year, BNP Paribas Cardif, the world leader in creditor insurance1, is partnering the awards, which recognize entrepreneurs who develop inclusive technologies that improve the daily lives of people with disabilities or limited autonomy. Reflecting its mission of making insurance more accessible, BNP Paribas Cardif will present the “Health & Care” Award.
Access is an essential issue for society
Over a billion people worldwide live with a disability2and must surmount day-to-day challenges. Because new technologies harbour tremendous potential to make their lives easier, the Handitech Awards were created to recognize innovations that lead to a more inclusive society. This ethos is perfectly aligned with BNP Paribas Cardif’s mission of making insurance more accessible and thus more inclusive and easier to understand, with a simple and straightforward customer experience.
BNP Paribas Cardif does not believe that disease should prevent people from owning a home, which is why in 2019 the insurer expanded its Cardif Libertés Emprunteur insurance policy to propose cover and adjusted rate scales for people suffering from four additional pathologies – Parkinson’s disease, obesity, gestational diabetes, psychological problems related to a traumatic event3– along with those already covered4.
In September of this year, the insurer also signed an agreement with the greater Paris region (Île-de-France) to help facilitate access to housing for people exposed to aggravated health risks, complementing the existing AERAS scheme, which enables people with these higher risks to obtain insurance and loans. BNP Paribas Cardif joined eight other banks and insurers to support the Île-de-France region project, providing information for its beneficiary clients and then performing end-to-end management of the program with no additional fees for either the region or clients.
This same commitment to broad access extends beyond France. In the Czech Republic, for example, BNP Paribas Cardif was a trailblazer in 2019 when it began offering life contingency cover for caregivers who support a family member who has lost their autonomy or has a disability.
Innovation for inclusion
Digital services and robotics open new paths to a more inclusive society. BNP Paribas Cardif promotes a vision that encourages greater inclusion thanks to digital solutions at two levels. As an insurer it continually adapts its offers to simplify medical formalities. The insurer is also engaged as an employer: in 2020 BNP Paribas Cardif Chief Executive Officer Renaud Dumora sponsored the launch of a support network called Ability, which connects BNP Paribas Group employees affected by disability or a disabling disease.
Last year BNP Paribas Cardif supported the launch of the intrapreneurial project tangata.net. This online platform now counts over 40 partners and lists more than 3,000 offers for accessible leisure activities, helping improve the daily lives of people with special needs and their carers. Tangata.net is also committed to employment and professional inclusion for people with disabilities, in particular within the framework of Act For Impact, the BNP Paribas social entrepreneurship label.
“We are extremely proud to be supporting the Handitech Awards, which promote access, empathy and entrepreneurial spirit, for a third year. As a worldwide specialist in personal insurance, presenting this award as we approach the end of the year with the pandemic still upon us is more meaningful than ever. Encouraging innovation that makes society more inclusive and egalitarian resonates powerfully with our role as an insurer,” said Renaud Dumora, Chief Executive Officer of BNP Paribas Cardif.
SAVE THE DATE
16-19 November: join the 2020 Handitech Awards ceremonies live, every day at 11a.m. with #TechInclusiveHour. Sign up here: https://www.lahanditech.fr/les-trophees-2020/inscription_LIVE
Follow the event on Twitter : @LaHanditech_ with #HTT2020
LinkedIn account : Lahanditech
Special report published in the 23 November 2020 edition of Le Figaro économie.
1 Source: Finaccord.
2 Source: World Health Organization.
3 Including aggression, separation or divorce, spousal violence or terrorist attack, for example.
4 Asthma, paraplegia, tetraplegia, rhumatoid polyarthritis, ankylosing spondylarthritis, valvulopathies, ischemic heart disease and coronary diseases.