The cooperation agreement between the Salzburg-based mail-order company and CALL DIRECT will offer three innovative and very flexible insurance products to 1.2 million customers:  

- Universal Pension Insurance
- Universal Health Insurance
- Universal Life Insurance

The product design has been kept as clear and simple as possible, it requires only little explanation and is therefore ideal for direct selling. Customers used to purchasing from Universal Versand by mail order can take their time and at their leisure make up their minds as to the best insurance solution for their specific needs.

As Klaus-J.Michel, spokesman of Universal Versand’s management, declared when he introduced the new partnership in Vienna on June 26^th, 2002, ”I am convinced that our customers will respond positively to these risk-free insurance schemes, as premiums and conditions are highly competitive and additional information can be obtained around the clock”.

Mr Michel also added that the product range might very well increase in the not-so-distant future. “Universal Versand, with its 1.2 million customers and 850,000 catalogues sent out twice a year, has focused on quick and excellent service and competitive conditions. Offering this service on the customer’s door-step represents a major benefit. CALL DIRECT, the most innovative company in its field, has recognized this, and is exploiting it.

CALL DIRECT: Selling by cooperation on a long-term basis
For many years CALL DIRECT has been active in direct selling. The partnership with Universal Versand will strengthen its position as Austrian market leader in direct insurance sales. Selling by cooperation is an important and successful core item in CALL DIRECT’s strategy as it enables a direct approach to its partner’s customers.

With Universal Versand, CALL DIRECT has found new partner whose customers match the expected profile: persons over 40 years of age, used to make off-line purchasing decisions from their home. CALL DIRECT’s long-term objective in this cooperation is to achieve a share of annual premium volume of between 5 and 10 %.

Introducing the new cooperation with Universal Versand, Dr Andreas Brandstetter, Managing Director of CALL DIRECT Versicherung AG stated, “This partnership enables us to draw on our experience and competence in direct sales and partnerships and offer easily understandable products with an interesting price/performance ratio and a highly professional service to Universal Versand’s customers. We are convinced that – in the medium term - our cooperation with Universal Versand will become an important and successful element in our direct sales programme.

Karl Unger, Managing Director of CALL DIRECT Versicherungen AG, added, ”This partnership reflects the commitment to direct sales within the UNIQA Group. Direct sales of insurance products have to meet very special requirements. The product designers of CALL DIRECT, the most successful and experienced direct insurance company, know them perfectly well and will integrate their know-how with Universal Versand’s experience. The combination of multi-channel and multi-branding strategies as well as the resulting sophisticated product-mix have led to successful solutions which allow UNIQA Group to avoid conflict situations between the various sales systems.”