ASTRA Asigurari performs the official opening of the Damage Investigation Center in Brasov

Today, September 7th, 2010, in a press conference, the ASTRA Asigurari company performs the official opening of the Damage Investigation Center's operation in Brasov. This is the first location of its kind opened in the city by an Insurer. The center operates within the Unirea Shopping Center premises in Brasov, in a wide, modern area, with a professional image.

The press conference was followed by an event with the attendance of the local authority representatives, officials of Brasov city, the local media, the company's business partners, collaborators and the top management of ASTRA Asigurari.

ASTRA Asigurari is a leader on the Romanian auto insurance market, justifying the large number of damage files the Insurer instruments on a monthly basis. In order to increase the efficiency of the time allocated to the settlement of files and in order to provide it clients with fast and efficient compensation services, the ASTRA Asigurari management implemented a program for the opening of several such Centers in large cities such as: Bucharest, Constanta, Iasi, Timisoara and Ploiesti.

“In order to support our clients and to provide them with services of the utmost quality and promptness, we have innovated on all levels: we have opened damage centers located in modern and easily accessible premises, we have varied our product portfolio, we have entered niches and we have accessed alternative sales channels. We have invested in top technology with which we have provided our sales force, and we have developed online. We have consolidated our position on the market with each passing year. We are currently the No. 1 company in the Top Romanian Insurers. We will continue to innovate and we will continue to open centers similar to what we have carried out today, in other large cities in the country. The members of the ASTRA Asigurari Directorate and myself will become personally involved in the settlement of each damage case. And our efforts will not stop here! We will continue with the same strength in order to provide Romanians with damage and insurance services at a Western level", declared Mr. Radu Mustatea, President of the ASTRA Asigurari Directorate.

Within the same event, the campaign has announced the launching of yet another project by which it provides its Clients with the 0800 0800 88 (free) telephone number and the reclamatii@astrasig.ro e-mail address, where they can notify any difficulty they might encounter in the process of settling their damage files. Thus, each case may be especially treated by the very President of the Directorate or by the Members of the ASTRA Asigurari Directorate.

On damages paid by the company

Damages paid by the company have registered a 57% increase in the 1st semester of 2010, compared to the 1st semester of 2009, and the amount thereof has increased from RON 148.41 million in 2009 to RON 233.26 million in 2010. The number of files approved by the beginning of September 2010 was 85,504 at the entire country level, of which 3,147 files were instrumented exclusively in Brasov. The amounts paid by the company for compensation by the beginning of September 2010 have the global amount of lei 323,115,169, of which lei 9,837,111 is compensation from damages registered in Brasov. The company has instrumented over 1,269 damage files resulted from the floods occurring in the Northern part of the country, and it was the first Insurer to perform the payment of compensations for the victims, so that they could immediately start to rebuild their homes. Furthermore, ASTRA Asigurari participates with funds to the rebuilding of the School in Saucesti Village, whose reopening will be carried out at the start of the new school year.

About ASTRA Asigurari

During the first 6 months of 2010, the ASTRA Asigurari company registered a net accounting profit of RON 11,363,128, with an 83% increase compared to S1/2009. The volume of the total subscribed gross premiums net of direct cancellations and re-insurance establishments (life and non-life) registered by the company during the first semester of 2010 amounts to RON 581,191,318, of which RON 574,903,620 is the volume of the gross premiums subscribed to general insurance, registering a 41% increase compared to the 1st semester of 2009. According to the insurance classes, during the first 6 months of 2010, ASTRA Asigurari obtained its highest increases in the vehicle liability insurance policies, where it performed subscribed gross premiums amounting to RON 324 million, registering a 223% increase compared to S1/2009. Life insurance policies have registered a 134% increase compared to the first semester of 2009, and the subscribed gross premiums amounted to RON 6.3 million. Moreover, the company has registered a 36% increase on the Aviation Casco segment, together with subscribed gross premiums amounting to RON 10.3 million on this business segment. We would also like to mentioned subscribed gross premiums amounting to RON 117 million on the building and assets insurance segment, subscribed gross premiums amounting to RON 7.5 million for hull liability insurance and RON 4 million subscribed gross premiums for hull casco and liability insurance policies, maintaining the ascending trend registered during the previous year. ASTRA Asigurari is a PAID founding member, holding the maximum contribution accepted by law, of 15% of the share package of this insurance pool. The company issued the DIP mandatory home insurance policy and the PAD complet policy, as a market leader for home insurances on the retail segment as well. The company is also a leader in marine and aviation insurance policies, with important names in this field listed in its portfolio.

Press Office - mihaela.constantin@astrasig.ro