Compliance
As a responsible company, we consider compliance with all relevant legal regulations, internal company policies, and ethical principles essential for the UNIQA Group. This conviction is based on the awareness that the insurance business fundamentally relies on trust. Compliance risks, such as corruption and bribery, carry potential economic and legal consequences. Even the mere suspicion of corruption and bribery can lead to reputational damage and the loss of trust from business partners and customers. Therefore, responsible behaviour is the foundation of our actions.
Group Compliance
The UNIQA principles associated with sustainability – not only for developing value-enhancing strategies, but also for taking on responsibility within economic, social and ecological fields – form the basis of a clear and transparent governance system.
Compliance and the UNIQA Code of Conduct not only meet legal requirements but are also important components of the corporate culture. The demands placed on these systems are documented through defined guidelines and policies which serve as the internal regulatory framework for the UNIQA Group.
Compliance
"Compliance” means adherence to laws, regulatory provisions and other legal regulations as well as values and rules to which the company voluntarily commits itself. Not everything that is legal is necessarily right. It is about transparency, honest business practices and business etiquette. We provide clarity with rules of conduct for all aspects of our daily work and assist all employees of the UNIQA Group in making these principles and rules a reality.
Under Solvency II and the Law on the Supervision of Insurance Undertakings (Versicherungsaufsichtsgesetz), every (re)insurance company must establish a Compliance function. Compliance is one of the four key functions and must fulfil the following key tasks:
- Consultation of the Management Board with regard to the compliance of regulations applicable for operating policy-based insurance companies,
- Assessment of the potential repercussions that changes to the legal environment would have on the activities of insurance or reinsurance companies and
- Identification and assessment of the risks associated with non-compliance of legal requirements (compliance risk).
In practice, our tasks include:
- Implementing the compliance risk analysis across all company areas and determining whether there is a risk of non-compliance with legal regulations as well as defining measures to minimise risk.
- Reporting to the Management Board, Supervisory Board and Risk Committee
- Developing and optimising various compliance tools and their practical implementation
- Providing advice on applicable legal regulations and supporting their implementation within the company
- Providing advice to staff on questions relating to the UNIQA Code of Conduct as well as reviewing and approving notifiable gifts
- Implementing measures to combat corruption, prevent money laundering and avoid terrorism-related financing
- Implementing FATCA (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) regulations and CRS (Common Reporting Standards)
Our international activities include:
- Developing the Compliance Organisation for the entire UNIQA Group
- Supporting international business units in the implementation of the Compliance program and the establishment of the compliance culture
- Ensuring uniform minimum standards on compliance for the entire UNIQA Group
- Implementing uniform Compliance regulations and Compliance reporting in all companies of the UNIQA Group
Local individuals that are responsible for compliance and that work with their teams to perform the operational tasks associated with implementing and monitoring compliance in the individual Group companies support us in international business units. The specific configuration of the Compliance Organisation depends on the size and the structure of the company and legitimate requirements on a national level. In this respect, UNIQA Compliance is always “on-site”.