The SIGNAL IDUNA Group was formed by the merger of Dortmund's SIGNAL insurance group with Hamburg's IDUNA NOVA Group. The companies of these two groups have been under the same management since July 1, 1999, and form what is known as a "horizontally organized group" [Gleichordnungs-
konzern] under German law.

The Group's two originating groups have been closely associated from the very start with small and medium businesses in the crafts, trades and commerce.

IDUNA NOVA traces its origins to an initiative by independent craftspeople and businesspeople who formed a health and death benefits fund in Hamburg in 1906.

The SIGNAL insurance companies grew out of Dortmund master craftsmen's desire to help themselves; in 1907, following the example of their peers in Hamburg, they founded a fund to support the sick in this major Westphalian city. During the next few decades, Dortmund and Hamburg became focal points for insurance services for professional groups.

The SIGNAL IDUNA Group has now evolved into an all-round insurer for every part of the population. But it has maintained its traditional close ties with craft, trade and business organizations.

The founders' original concept of "security through self-reliance" has remained meaningful down to the present, and is becoming more and more widely established in public social insurance systems. It is no longer possible to avoid assuming greater personal responsibility for one's own protection by taking out private insurance. This is precisely where SIGNAL IDUNA is well-positioned in the market.

Its strength and core competency lies in covering all risks to which private households are exposed, and in customized coverage of risk for small and medium enterprises. On top of this, SIGNAL IDUNA has a broad range of financial service products for every segment of the population.