Company devaluations and downsizing will cost the insurance group a one-off 210 million euros this year.
The listed insurer UNIQA wants to cut a total of around 600 employees in the group by 2022 – mainly in Austria. The management board and the supervisory board had decided and approved a far-reaching strategy program today, as the group announced on Thursday evening.
The downsizing is to be achieved “to the greatest possible extent” through natural departure and amicable termination of contracts. A social plan had been agreed.
At the same time, the insurance industry announced expected one-off expenses for downsizing and impairment of goodwill in individual countries totaling around EUR 210 million.
According to the information, the job cuts will be reflected in the 2020 consolidated financial statements with expenses for restructuring measures of up to around EUR 110 million. On the other hand, there would be “targeted savings” of up to around 50 million euros per year.
Today's resolution on the “UNIQA 3.0 strategy program” also means a review of the medium-term group planning and will “subject to significant changes in the cost of capital parameters” for the 2020 financial year impairment losses on goodwill in the countries of Serbia, Bulgaria and Romania amounting to around EUR 100 million trigger.
No forecast for 2020
Due to the persistently high level of uncertainty regarding macroeconomic and financial developments, UNIQA Insurance Group AG “currently cannot give a forecast for the 2020 financial year”, according to the company on Thursday before the figures for the third quarter of 2020 were presented on Thursday.
