Business development in Austria in 2009

Premium growth

The Austrian companies of the Vienna Insurance Group wrote gross premiums of EUR 3,874.15 million in 2009. This corresponds to an increase of EUR 118.43 million, or 3.2%, over the previous year. EUR 2,316.50 million of this premium volume was generated by Wiener Städtische, EUR 684.71 million by Donau and EUR 872.95 million by s Versicherung. Net earned premiums rose from EUR 3,409.34 million in 2008 to EUR 3,529.64 million in 2009, corresponding to an increase of 3.5%.

EUR 1,567.36 million, or 40.5%, of the premiums were written in the property/casualty area, which represented a slight decrease of 0.1% compared to 2008.

Life insurance contributed EUR 1,985.43 million, or 51.3%, of the premium volume in Austria, with the Vienna Insurance Group recording an overall increase of 6.0% in Austria in 2009.

Health insurance generated EUR 321.36 million in premiums, corresponding to a 2.3% increase over the preceding year (2008: EUR 314.28 million).

Expenses for claims and insurance benefits

Partly because of numerous storms, expenses for claims and insurance benefits rose from EUR 3,165.92 million in the previous year to EUR 3,274.60 million in 2009. This represents a 3.4% increase in expenses. The exceptionally rapid claims settlement provided by the Vienna Insurance Group sets it apart as a reliable partner in the event of storms. Claims can also be reported over the Internet (www.wienerstaedtische.at and www.donauversicherung.at).

Operating expenses

The Austrian companies of the Vienna Insurance Group had operating expenses of EUR 606.38 million in 2009, including acquisition costs and less reinsurance commissions received, which represents a slight increase of 1.2% over the previous year.

Profit of EUR 247.49 million

The profit before taxes earned in Austria by the Vienna Insurance Group fell by 28.1% compared to 2008.

Combined ratio of 96.0%

Although the combined ratio of the Austrian portion of the Vienna Insurance Group was slightly above the value in the previous year, it was nevertheless once again far below 100%. To be precise, the combined ratio of the Austrian companies after reinsurance (not including investment income) was 96.0% in 2009 (2007: 94.6%). Effective claims management by the Vienna Insurance Group was the main factor permitting this favourable result to be achieved once again.