Uniqa better than expected after nine months

November 20, 2020 – Uniqa was able to keep premium income and pre-tax earnings practically constant in the first nine months compared to the same period of the previous year. The expense for insurance benefits has decreased and the underwriting result has doubled. The downside: persistently high costs and poor investment income.

The first nine months of the current financial year are for the Uniqa Insurance Group AG went better than expected in April, said CEO Andreas Brandstetter at the results presentation on Thursday. Despite the Covid 19 crisis, the group delivered a strong result.

Allocated premiums and results have remained almost constant compared to the same period of the previous year, the combined ratio remained unchanged at a “good” 95.9 percent, according to a press release.

Brandstetter admitted that the weak points in the first three quarters were the expense ratio and the return on investment. Nevertheless, with more than 150 million euros, one of the best pre-tax results in the company’s history was achieved in the third quarter.

Insurance benefits decreased

The total amount of insurance benefits retained by the group fell by three percent to EUR 2,705.4 million in the reporting period. The underwriting result almost doubled from 62.8 to 124.9 million euros.

In connection with Covid-19, around 70 million euros in services were incurred, according to Brandstetter, among other things due to business interruptions or the cancellation of events.

Higher storm damage and several major losses also had a negative impact. On the other hand, the “basic claims” in the private customer sector developed positively, not only but also because of the reduced mobility and the lower volume of traffic during the lockdown.

Result 2020: loads certain, but no forecast

A “one-time” provision of 110 million euros will be set up this year for restructuring at the Austrian location, in particular for the planned downsizing and the closure of locations.

In addition, there are 100 million euros in impairments on goodwill in Serbia, Bulgaria and Romania. The reason for this is a “reassessment of all business plans”.

The integration of the companies acquired by Axa in Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia is proceeding “according to plan”. Uniqa has thus acquired five million new customers and premium income of 800 million euros; From 2021 a “significant contribution to earnings” is expected.

Uniqa does not give a specific forecast for the 2020 annual result: “It would be presumptuous to do that,” explains Brandstetter. Due to Covid-19, not all developments can be assessed yet.

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