INSUREPAIR, the all-trades insurance reinstatement firm, has stepped up its sustainability drive by taking delivery of its first electric car.

One of Scotland’s leading authorities in the sector, the Edinburgh company has recently moved from Abbeyhill into a more energy-efficient headquarters in the Morningside area of the city.

The privately-owned business has been paperless for around 10 years and is now turning its focus to upgrading its vehicles which serve Fife, the central belt and Scottish Borders as well as the capital from its base on the south side of the city.

The Smart EQ Fortwo can do 80 miles on one charge, and can be recharged at up to 22kW from a commercial charging point, which will take the battery from 10% to 80% in 40mins – ideal for frequent city driving.

Managing Director Richard O’Donnell, whose firm also specialises in renovations and property maintenance said: “We operate in a sector that traditionally has not been great for the environment but as times and attitudes change, then so must businesses.

No matter the size of the company it’s incumbent on owners to look at their carbon footprint and do what they can to improve it and change their business model wherever possible.”

He added: “This is the perfect car for getting around what is often an extremely busy Edinburgh city centre. We clock up thousands of miles a year attending to clients in the city so this is an important addition to our fleet.”

Approved and accredited by major insurance companies, brokers and loss adjusters throughout the UK, INSUREPAIR operates more than 20 vehicles in attending to clients’ needs across the country.

Acknowledging the need to continually monitor the company’s sustainable development, O’Donnell plans to phase in more electric cars and vans in the next 12 months.

He said: “We have our business plan in place, have set our targets and ambitions for 2025 and as part of that we’re aiming to roll out more electric vehicles across the fleet. 

We are constantly reviewing our practices as we strive to reduce the impact on the environment as it is something that has to be taken very seriously.”