In 2013, UNIQA International increased the premium volume written, including the savings portion of unit- and index-linked life insurance, by 11.3 per cent to € 2,162.4 million (2012: € 1,942.8 million). Recurring premiums rose by 4.2 per cent to € 1,564.9 million (2012: € 1,501.5 million), while single premiums increased by 35.4 per cent to € 597.5 million (2012: € 441.4 million).
Including the savings portion of unit- and index-linked life insurance, premiums earned by UNIQA International amounted to € 1,631.4 million (2012: € 1,414.3 million). Retained premiums earned (in accordance with IFRS) increased by 17.9 per cent to € 1,323.2 million in 2013 (2012: € 1,122.0 million).
While the premiums written in property and casualty insurance rose by 1.9 per cent to € 1,093.7 million (2012: € 1,073.1 million), the corresponding figure for health insurance declined slightly by 3.2 per cent to € 71.4 million (2012: € 73.8 million). The premiums written in life insurance (including the savings portion of unit- and index-linked life insurance) increased substantially by 25.3 per cent to € 997.3 million (2012: € 795.9 million).
Retained premiums earned (in accordance with IFRS) increased by 1.6 per cent to € 596.6 million in property and casualty insurance (2012: € 587.3 million), by 5.6 per cent to € 69.7 million in health insurance (2012: € 66.0 million) and by 40.2 per cent to € 656.8 million in life insurance (2012: € 468.7 million). Including the savings portion of unit- and index-linked life insurance, premiums earned in life insurance amounted to € 965.1 million (2012: € 761.0 million).
In Central Europe (CE) – Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Hungary – premiums earned, including the savings portion of unit- and index-linked life insurance, increased by 5.5 per cent to € 606.8 million in the 2013 financial year (2012: € 575.4 million). In Eastern Europe (EE) – consisting of Romania and Ukraine – premiums earned, including the savings portion of unit- and index-linked life insurance, rose by 27.8 per cent to € 148.8 million (2012: € 116.4 million). In Southeastern Europe (SEE) – Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia – premiums grew by 9.1 per cent to € 158.7 million in 2013 (2012: € 145.5 million). In Russia (RU), premiums earned, including the savings portion of unit- and index-linked life insurance, increased by 51.2 per cent to € 64.3 million (2012: € 42.5 million), while the figure for Western Europe (WE) – Italy, Liechtenstein and Switzerland – rose by 22.1 per cent to € 652.9 million due to the increase in single premiums in Italy (2012: € 534.5 million).
Benefits
Retained insurance benefits at UNIQA International increased by 23.9 per cent to € 955.9 million in 2013 (2012: € 771.5 million). Retained insurance benefits in property and casualty insurance rose by 6.6 per cent to € 366.1 million (2012: € 343.5 million), whereas the figure for health insurance declined by 3.3 per cent to € 42.5 million (2012: € 44.0 million). Retained insurance benefits in life insurance increased by 42.5 per cent to € 547.4 as a result of the sharp rise in the premium volume (2012: € 384.0 million). The loss ratio in property and casualty insurance increased slightly to 61.4 per cent in 2013 (2012: 58.5 per cent).
In the CE region, benefits fell by 12.9 per cent to € 239.1 million in 2013 (2012: € 274.5 million), while the figure for the EE region rose by 46.8 per cent to € 92.9 million (2012: € 63.3 million). In SEE, benefits increased by 11.4 per cent to € 95.6 million (2012: € 85.8 million). Benefits amounted to € 36.3 million in Russia (2012: € 23.3 million), while the benefit volume in Western Europe also rose by 51.5 per cent to € 492.1 million on the back of the strong growth in the premium volume (2012: € 324.7 million).
Operating expenses
Operating expenses less reinsurance commission received and profit shares from reinsurance business in the amount of € 147.3 million (2012: € 128.7 million) increased slightly by 1.2 per cent to € 458.1 million in the 2013 financial year (2012: € 452.5 million). Operating expenses fell by 4.7 per cent to € 250.4 million in property and casualty insurance (2012: € 262.8 million), whereas the figures for health insurance and life insurance increased by 17.9 per cent to € 28.6 million (2012: € 24.2 million) and 8.3 per cent to € 179.1 million (2012: € 165.4 million) respectively.
UNIQA International’s cost ratio after reinsurance, i.e. the ratio of total operating expenses less reinsurance commission received and profit shares from reinsurance business ceded to premiums earned, including the savings portion of unit- and index-linked life insurance, decreased to 28.1 per cent in the past year as a result of the developments mentioned above (2012: 32.0 per cent).
In 2013, operating expenses less reinsurance commission received and profit shares from reinsurance business fell by 0.4 per cent to € 178.5 million in CE (2012: € 179.3 million), increased by 12.5 per cent to € 74.2 million in EE (2012: € 66.0 million) and rose by 10.6 per cent to € 76.5 million in SEE (2012: € 69.2 million). Operating expenses in Russia amounted to € 27.3 million (2012: € 20.6 million), while the figure for Western Europe declined by 11.2 per cent to € 74.8 million (2012: € 84.2 million). Operating expenses attributable to administration (UNIQA International AG) decreased by 19.5 per cent to € 26.8 million (2012: € 33.3 million).
Investment result
Net investment income decreased slightly by 4.5 per cent to € 143.1 million in 2013 (2012: € 149.8 million).
Profit from ordinary activities
The profit from ordinary activities in the UNIQA International segment improved significantly in the year under review to € 19.6 million (2012: loss of € 17.6 million). The loss on ordinary activities in property and casualty insurance amounted to € 1.8 million (2012: € 22.5 million), whereas the profit from ordinary activities in health insurance increased to € 1.6 million (2012: € 0.9 million) and the corresponding figure for life insurance quadrupled to € 19.7 million (2012: € 4.0 million).
