Auditor's Opinion (report of the independent auditor)
We have audited the German version of the consolidated financial statements of UNIQA Versicherungen AG, Vienna, for the financial year from 1 January to 31 December 2008. These Group consolidated financial statements include the consolidated balance sheet as at 31 December 2008, the consolidated income statement, the Group cash flow statement and the statement of changes in Group equity for the financial year ending 31 December 2008, as well as a summary of the most important methods of accounting and valuation applied and other notes.
Legal representatives responsibility for the consolidated financial statements
The legal representatives of the company are responsible for the prepar ation of consolidated financial statements that give a true and fair view of the net assets, the financial position and the profit situation of the Group, in agreement with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as applied in the EU. This responsibility includes the design, implementation and maintenance of an internal control system, to the extent that this is important for the preparation of the consolidated statements and the negotiation of as true a picture as possible of the Groups net assets, financial position and profit situation, so that these consolidated statements are free from material misrepresentations, whether due to intentional or unintentional mistakes. It also includes the choice and application of suitable accounting and valuation methods and the effecting of estimates that appear appropriate under the existing circumstances.
The auditors responsibility
We are responsible for rendering an audit opinion on these consolidated financial statements on the basis of the audit performed by us. Our audit was conducted in accordance with the prevailing statutory pro visions and the International Standards on Auditing (ISA) as published by the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). These principles require that we conform to the ethics of the profession and plan and execute the audit in such a manner that we can judge, with a sufficient degree of certainty, whether the consolidated financial statements are free from material misstatements.
An audit includes the execution of audit procedures to verify the amounts and other statements in the consolidated financial statements. The choice of audit procedures depends on the conscientious discretion of the auditor, taking into consideration his estimate of the chance that a material misstatement has been made, whether due to an intentional or an unintentional mistake. When estimating the level of this risk, the auditor takes the in ternal control system into consideration, to the extent that it is of significance for preparing the consolidated financial statements and providing as true and fair a view as possible of the Groups net assets, financial position and profit situation, in order to determine the appropriate audit procedures under the circumstances; the auditor does not, however, give an opinion on the effectiveness of the Groups internal control system. The audit also includes our evaluation of the adequacy of the accounting principles and valuation methods applied and the material estimates made by the legal representatives of the company, as well as an assessment of the overall tenor of the consolidated financial statements.
We believe that we obtained sufficient and suitable verification with our audit, so that our audit provides a reasonably sound basis for our opinion.
Audit opinion
Our audit did not lead to any objections. In our opinion, based on the findings of our audit, the consolidated financial statements comply with the statutory requirements and give as accurate a view as possible of the net assets and financial position of the Group as of 31 December 2008, as well as the Groups profit situation and cash flow for the financial year from 1 January to 31 December 2008, in accordance with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), as applicable in the EU.
Report on the Group management report
Due to the prevailing statutory provisions in Austria, the Group management report is to be audited as to whether it is in agreement with the consolidated financial statements and whether or not other statements in the Group management report give a false impression of the situation of the Group.
In our opinion, the Group management report agrees with the consolidated financial statements.
Vienna, 16 April 2009
KPMG Austria GmbH
Wirtschaftsprüfungs- und Steuerberatungsgesellschaft
Georg Weinberger
Chartered Accountant
p.p. Alexander Knott
Chartered Accountant