Press Release

10.01.2013

ARAG Ranks First in a Study on the Comprehensibility of Product Information

In a direct comparison of German insurers, ARAG ranks ahead of its competitors when it comes to the comprehensibility of product and customer information according to a study conducted by AMC Finanzmarkt GmbH and H&H Communication Lab GmbH. The study focused on insurance policy terms, brochures and product information issued by 21 prominent German insurance companies, which were analyzed with reference to the “Hohenheimer Comprehensibility Index”. The information materials provided by the Düsseldorf family-owned enterprise took first place in the final rankings. As important as this result is for ARAG, it also shows that a great deal still needs to be done in order to eliminate all obstacles to understanding.

The German insurance industry has traditionally struggled in efforts to provide comprehensible customer and product information. Yet the industry is making strides on this issue. Nearly every insurer is revising its policy terms, brochures and product information with the aim of making them more readable for customers. Thus the current study on the comprehensibility of insurance information provides an important snapshot of the current state. ARAG tops the rankings with an overall rating of 10.32 points for all information materials analyzed.

“This is no coincidence. It is simply a result of the serious approach we pursued in developing our new brand strategy,” explains Klaus Heiermann, Chief Representative of ARAG SE. The goal of the strategy implementation process initiated in mid-2011 is to transform the ARAG brand from a straight product brand into a customer brand by placing particular emphasis on the aspect of independence.

“Independence also means that our customers understand what they are paying for. And that includes comprehensible product information and policy terms,” says Klaus Heiermann. Although being the benchmark leader, the study reveals that ARAG still has a long way to go. According to the authors of the study, “a rating of at least 10 points is needed to demonstrate basic comprehensibility.” ARAG is one of only two insurers that actually achieve this level of basic comprehensibility according to the “Hohenheimer Comprehensibility Index” on a scale of 1 to 20 points. In their summary assessment of all of the documents analyzed in the course of the study, the authors came to the conclusion that “Although we found a few isolated rays of hope and positive examples, there is little concrete evidence of the numerous efforts to improve comprehensibility.”