Hannover Rück SE and its subsidiaries are required to prepare a consolidated financial statement and group management report in accordance with § 290 German Commercial Code (HGB).

Pursuant to EU Regulation (EC) No. 1606 / 2002, the present consolidated financial statement and group management report of Hannover Re have been drawn up in accordance with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) that are to be applied within the European Union. In addition, we have made allowance for the regulations that are also applicable pursuant to § 315a Para. 1 German Commercial Code (HGB) and the supplementary provisions of the Articles of Association of Hannover Rück SE as amended on 18 July 2013.

The consolidated financial statement reflects all IFRS in force as at 31 December 2014 as well as all interpretations issued by the International Financial Reporting Interpretations Committee (IFRIC), application of which was mandatory for the 2014 financial year. IFRS 4 “Insurance Contracts” requires disclosures on the nature and extent of risks stemming from reinsurance contracts, while IFRS 7 “Financial Instruments: Disclosures” requires similar information on risks from financial instruments. Additionally, § 315 Para. 2 Number 2 German Commercial Code (HGB) also contains requirements for insurance undertakings with regard to information on the management of underwriting and financial risks that is to be provided in the management report. The disclosures resulting from these requirements are included in the risk report. We have dispensed with an additional presentation of the same content in the notes. In order to obtain a comprehensive overview of the risks to which Hannover Re is exposed it is therefore necessary to consider both the risk report and the relevant information in the notes. We refer the reader accordingly to the corresponding remarks in the risk report and the notes.

Since 2002 the standards adopted by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) have been referred to as “International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)”; the standards dating from earlier years still bear the name “International Accounting Standards (IAS)”. Standards are cited in our notes accordingly; in cases where the notes do not make explicit reference to a particular standard, the term IFRS is used. In view of the fact that reinsurance contracts, in conformity with IFRS 4 “Insurance Contracts”, are recognised according to the pertinent provisions of United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (US GAAP) as applicable on the date of initial application of IFRS 4 on 1 January 2005, we cite individual insurance-specific standards of US GAAP using the designation “Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (SFAS)” that was valid at that time.

The declaration of conformity required pursuant to § 161 German Stock Corporation Act (AktG) regarding compliance with the German Corporate Governance Code has been submitted and, as described in the Declaration of the Executive Board regarding the Corporate Governance of the Company, made permanently available on the Hannover Re website.

The annual financial statements included in the consolidated financial statement were for the most part drawn up as at 31 December. Pursuant to IFRS 10 “Consolidated Financial Statements” there is no requirement to compile interim accounts for Group companies with diverging reporting dates because their closing dates are no earlier than three months prior to the closing date for the consolidated financial statement. Insofar as no interim accounts were drawn up, allowance has been made for the effects of significant transactions between the diverging reporting dates and the closing date for the consolidated financial statement.

The annual financial statements of all companies were drawn up in accordance with standard Group accounting and measurement rules pursuant to IFRS.

The consolidated financial statement was drawn up in euros (EUR), the amounts shown have been rounded to EUR thousands and – provided this does not detract from transparency – to EUR millions. Figures indicated in brackets refer to the previous year.

The present consolidated financial statement was released for publication by a resolution of the Executive Board on 26 February 2015.

New accounting standards or accounting standards applied for the first time

In June 2013 the IASB issued “Novation of Derivatives and Continuation of Hedge Accounting” (Amendments to IAS 39 “Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement”). These amendments allow a novation of an OTC derivative designated as a hedging instrument to be deemed to be a continuation of the existing hedging relationship. The amendments, which were endorsed by the EU in December 2013, have a mandatory effective date for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2014. The amendments did not have any implications for the carrying amounts in the consolidated financial statement or for Group net income.

In May 2013 the IASB published IFRIC 21 “Levies”. IFRIC 21 provides guidance on the accounting of outflows imposed on entities by governments that do not constitute outflows within the scope of IAS 12 “Income Taxes”. IFRIC 21 is effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2014 and was endorsed by the EU in June 2014. The interpretation did not have any implications for the carrying amounts in the consolidated financial statement or for Group net income.

In December 2011 the IASB issued “Offsetting Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities (Amendments to IAS 32)”. While the offsetting rules for financial instruments remain unchanged, the application guidance of the standard clarifies the meaning of “currently has a legally enforceable right to set-off ” and “simultaneous”. The amendments have a mandatory effective date for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2014 and were endorsed by the EU in December 2012. The amendments did not have any implications for the carrying amounts in the consolidated financial statement or for Group net income.

In May 2011 the IASB published five new or revised standards governing consolidation, the accounting of investments in associated companies and joint ventures and the related disclosures in the notes.

In this connection IFRS 10 “Consolidated Financial Statements” and IFRS 11 “Joint Arrangements” replaced the previous standards governing consolidated financial statements and special purpose entities (IAS 27 “Consolidated and Separate Financial Statements” and SIC-12 “Consolidation – Special Purpose Entities”) as well as the standards governing the accounting of interests in joint ventures (IAS 31 “Interests in Joint Ventures” and SIC-13 “Jointly Controlled Entities – Non-Monetary Contributions by Venturers”). The major new feature of IFRS 10 is that it identifies control as the single basis for verifying the consolidation requirement, irrespective of whether control is substantiated in company law, contractually or economically. In accordance with IFRS 11 the proportionate inclusion of interests in joint ventures – a practice not adopted by Hannover Re – will no longer be permissible. Rather, interests in joint ventures must be accounted for using the equity method. IFRS 12 “Disclosure of Interests in Other Entities” encompasses the disclosure requirements for IFRS 10 and 11 as well as IAS 27 and IAS 28. With the aim of clarifying for the users of financial statements the nature of an entity’s interest in other entities as well as the effects of those interests on its financial position, financial performance and cash flows, this gave rise to expanded annual mandatory disclosures in comparison with the previous requirements. With the exception of the rules governing investment entities, the new requirements, especially with respect to disclosure requirements, were not amended in IAS 34 “Interim Financial Reporting”. The corresponding disclosures are mostly provided in Sections 4.1, 4.2, 6.1 and 6.14.

Further amendments were made to the standards in 2012. In June 2012 the IASB issued “Consolidated Financial Statements, Joint Arrangements and Disclosure of Interests in Other Entities: Transition Guidance – Amendments to IFRS 10, IFRS 11 and IFRS 12”. The requirement to provide adjusted comparative information is limited upon initial application to only the immediately preceding period; retrospective adjustments for subsidiaries sold in the comparative period are not required. Furthermore, it is not necessary to provide comparative information on unconsolidated structured entities upon initial application of IFRS 12. These amendments were endorsed by the EU in April 2013. In October 2012 the IASB issued “Investment Entities (Changes to IFRS 10, IFRS 12 and IAS 27)”. Given that the parent company of the Hannover Re Group does not meet the definition of an investment entity, these amendments – which were endorsed by the EU in November 2013 – are not relevant to Hannover Re.

The revised version of IAS 27 consists solely of requirements for the accounting of investments in subsidiaries, jointly controlled entities and associates in separate (non-consolidated) financial statements of the parent company. In this context, only minimal changes were made relative to the previous wording of the standard.

The revised version of IAS 28 “Investments in Associates and Joint Ventures” extends the content of standards governing the accounting of investments in associated companies to include rules governing the accounting of investments in joint ventures. In both instances application of the equity method is required.

The requirements of IFRS 10, 11 and 12 as well as the revised IAS 27 and 28 were to be applied to financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2013. The Accounting Regulatory Committee (ARC) decided in June 2012, however, that application of the aforementioned standards within the EU shall not be mandatory until one year later, with an effective date for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2014. The new IFRS 10, 11, 12 and the revised IAS 27 and 28 as well as the changes published in 2012 have now been endorsed in their entirety by the EU. Initial application of the new and revised standards on consolidation did not give rise to any changes in Hannover Re’s scope of consolidation.

Standards or changes in standards that have not yet entered into force or are not yet applicable

The IASB has issued the following standards, interpretations and amendments to existing standards with possible implications for the consolidated financial statement of Hannover Re, application of which is not yet mandatory for the year under review and which are not being applied early by Hannover Re:

In December 2014 the IASB published “Amendments to IFRS 10, IFRS 12 and IAS 28: Investment Entities: Applying the Consolidation Exception”. The amendments address issues that have arisen in the context of applying the consolidation exception for investment entities. They are effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2016 and have still to be endorsed by the EU.

In December 2014 the IASB also issued “Amendments to IAS 1: Disclosure Initiative”. The amendments provide clarifications in relation to materiality considerations, the aggregation and disaggregation of disclosures and the understandability and comparability of the notes to the IFRS financial statements. They are effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2016 and have still to be endorsed by the EU.

In September 2014 the IASB published the “Annual Improvements to IFRSs 2012 – 2014 Cycle”. These annual improvements involve amendments and clarifications relating to the following standards: IFRS 5 “Non-current Assets Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations”, IFRS 7 “Financial Instruments: Disclosures”, IAS 19 “Employee Benefits” and IAS 34 “Interim Financial Reporting”. The amendments are effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 July 2016 and have still to be endorsed by the EU.

In September 2014 the IASB also published “Amendments to IFRS 10 and IAS 28: Sales or Contributions of Assets between an Investor and its Associate or Joint Venture”. These clarify that the extent of gain or loss recognition for transactions between an investor and its associate or joint venture depends upon whether the assets sold or contributed constitute a business. The amendments are effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 July 2016 and have still to be endorsed by the EU.

In July 2014 the IASB published the final version of IFRS 9 “Financial Instruments”, which replaces all previous versions of this standard. The standard now contains requirements governing classification and measurement, impairment based on the new expected loss impairment model and general hedge accounting. The originally included model for macro hedge accounting, which considers risk management that assesses risk exposures on a continuous basis and at a portfolio level, is being treated separately from general hedge accounting by the IASB outside of IFRS 9. Initial mandatory application of the standard, which has still to be endorsed by the EU, is tentatively set for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2018. Hannover Re is currently reviewing the implications of this standard and anticipates significant implications for the consolidated financial statement.

In May 2014 the IASB issued IFRS 15 “Revenue from Contracts with Customers”. The standard specifies when and in what amount revenue is to be recognised and which disclosures are required for this purpose. IFRS 15 provides a single five-step model to be applied to all contracts with customers. Financial instruments and other contractual rights and obligations which are to be recognised under separate standards as well as ( re)insurance contracts within the scope of IFRS 4 are expressly exempted from the standard’s scope of application. The standard is to be applied to an annual reporting period beginning on or after 1 January 2017, but has still to be endorsed by the EU.

In May 2014 the IASB also amended a number of existing standards.

The “Amendments to IAS 16 and IAS 38: Clarification of Acceptable Methods of Depreciation and Amortisation” provide additional guidance on the methods that can be used to calculate depreciation or amortisation of property, plant and equipment and intangible assets. The new guidelines are effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2016, but have still to be endorsed by the EU.

The “Amendments to IFRS 11: Accounting for Acquisitions of Interests in Joint Operations” clarify the accounting for acquisitions of an interest in a joint operation when the operation constitutes a business as defined in IFRS 11. These amendments are effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2016, but have still to be endorsed by the EU.

In January 2014 the IASB issued IFRS 14 “Regulatory Deferral Accounts”. The standard permits an entity which is a first-time adopter of IFRS to continue to account, with some limited changes, for “regulatory deferral account balances” in accordance with its previous GAAP, both on initial adoption of IFRS and in subsequent financial statements. Regulatory deferral account balances, and movements in them, are presented separately in the statement of financial position and statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income, and specific disclosures are required. IFRS 14 applies to an entity’s first annual IFRS financial statements for a period beginning on or after 1 January 2016, but has still to be endorsed by the EU.

In December 2013 the IASB issued “Annual Improvements to IFRSs 2010 – 2012 Cycle” and “Annual Improvements to IFRSs 2011 – 2013 Cycle”. The annual improvements involve minor amendments and clarifications relating to the following standards: IFRS 2 “Share-based Payment”, IFRS 3 “Business Combinations”, IFRS 8 “Operating Segments”, IFRS 13 “Fair Value Measurement”, IAS 16 “Property, Plant and Equipment”, IAS 24 “Related Party Disclosures”, IAS 38 “Intangible Assets”, IFRS 1 “First-time Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards” and IAS 40 “Investment Property”. Both collections of improvements are effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 July 2014 and were endorsed by the EU in December 2014.

In November 2013 the IASB issued “Defined Benefit Plans: Employee Contributions (Amendments to IAS 19)” and thereby clarified the requirements that relate to how contributions from employees or third parties that are linked to service should be attributed to periods of service. The amendments are intended to provide relief in that entities are allowed to deduct contributions from service cost in the period in which the service is rendered. The amendments are effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 July 2014 and were endorsed by the EU in December 2014.