21.09.2011 |
- UNIQA expects for 2011 roughly EUR 190 million in one-time expenditures to cover the restructuring of the Group
- Group annual result for 2011 expected to be a "flat zero" - notwithstanding any further negative developments on the capital markets
- The one-time expenditures will be entirely covered in the 2011 balance sheet and financed from the operating result of the 2011 fiscal year; in future years, no additional, significant charges are expected from the Group restructuring
- Roughly EUR 80 million each for provisions for social cushioning of the personnel measures and for balance sheet reserves in the area of participations as part of the focussing on the core business as well as an additional approximately EUR 30 million for expanding the group entitled to participate in the UNIQA employee pension fund - all taking effect in the fourth quarter of the current fiscal year
- Resource redistribution for increased focus on customer needs - expansion of the regional presence in Austria
In its meeting on September 20th, 2011, the Supervisory Board of UNIQA Versicherungen AG passed a resolution at the request of the Management Board to cover all one-time expenditures required for the successfully begun Group restructuring entirely within the current fiscal year, as far as possible. The continued positive developments in the core operational business, which can already be seen in the results for the first half of the year, enable the Group to make the necessary one-time investment for the restructuring during the current fiscal year, thereby relieving the future results of the associated burden. This will ensure that no further significant charges will arise in this regard during the coming years.
In total, roughly EUR 190 million of one-time expenditures for the Group restructuring will take effect in the fourth quarter of the current fiscal year. In view of the continued positive development of the core operational business, UNIQA expects a "flat zero" for the Group's 2011 annual result even despite this one-time charge - notwithstanding any further negative developments on the capital markets (particularly in connection with the Greece exposure).
The largest share of the one-time expenditures comprises roughly EUR 80 million each for provisions for social cushioning of the personnel measures in the next three years as well as balance sheet reserves in the area of participations. In addition to other investments, the amount also includes an additional endowment of the UNIQA employee pension fund by roughly EUR 30 million due to expansion of the group of entitled participants.
From today's perspective, it is expected that UNIQA Versicherungen AG will pay out a significantly reduced dividend for the 2011 fiscal year as a result of the restructuring expenditures.
The focus of the UNIQA Group on new long-term and sustainable growth targets (doubling of the number of clients to 15 million by 2020; improvement of the annual result by up to EUR 400 million by 2015) and the associated new structure as well as the announced concentration on the core insurance business also make it necessary to shift resources from administration to customer service and sales. Over the next three years, roughly 600 positions in administration (-7%) should be reduced Group-wide, starting with 200 positions (-20%) at the head office within the next 12 months. This will achieve a long-term improvement in the personnel costs ratio in the administrative departments. In 2011, the UNIQA Group will set aside roughly EUR 80 million to cushion all planned personnel measures in the coming years.
At the same time, massive qualitative and quantitative improvements will be undertaken in all areas of direct customer service and sales. For example, an expansion of the regional presence in Austria from 300 to 400 "insurers on site" by the year 2015 is planned in the interests of bringing the Group closer to its clients.
Reservations concerning statements about the future
This message contains statements that refer to future developments in the UNIQA Group Austria. These statements are appraisals that are made based on all information available to us at the current point in time. If the assumptions on which they are based do not occur, the actual events may vary from the results currently expected. For this reason, we cannot accept liability for these statements.
Vienna, 21. September 2011