2.9Provisions and contingent liabilities
in CHF mn | Long service awards | Personnel provisions / restructuring 1 | Restoration costs and inherited pollution | Litigation risks, other 1 | Total |
As of 1 January 2024 | 10.5 | 4.0 | 0.6 | 2.3 | 17.4 |
Disposals of consolidated companies | - | - | - | -0.0 | -0.0 |
Increase | 2.5 | 23.0 | 3.1 | 19.1 | 47.7 |
Reversal | -1.4 | -0.3 | - | -0.8 | -2.5 |
used during the financial year | -0.9 | -6.5 | - | -0.5 | -7.9 |
Currency effects | - | - | - | 0.0 | 0.0 |
As of 31 December 2024 | 10.7 | 20.2 | 3.7 | 20.0 | 54.6 |
due within 1 year | 1.2 | 11.4 | 0.7 | 16.7 | 30.0 |
due within 1 to 5 years | 9.5 | 8.8 | 3.0 | 3.3 | 24.6 |
As of 1 January 2025 | 10.7 | 20.2 | 3.7 | 20.0 | 54.6 |
Disposals of consolidated companies | - | - | - | -0.1 | -0.1 |
Increase | 1.3 | 17.1 | 0.0 | 7.5 | 25.8 |
Reversal | -1.2 | -4.6 | -0.0 | -0.2 | -6.1 |
used during the financial year | -1.0 | -11.9 | -0.6 | -2.3 | -15.9 |
Currency effects | - | - | - | -0.0 | -0.0 |
As of 31 December 2025 | 9.7 | 20.8 | 3.0 | 24.8 | 58.3 |
due within 1 year | 1.0 | 8.5 | 0.0 | 21.2 | 30.7 |
due within 1 to 5 years | 8.7 | 12.2 | 3.0 | 3.6 | 27.6 |
1Provisions for Long Term Incentives (LTI) are reported under personnel provisions (previously ‘Other’). The previous year's figures have been adjusted of 1.7 CHF mn accordingly.
The increase in personnel and restructuring provisions is primarily attributable to the costs of the social plans for restructuring at Goldbach and 20 Minuten, as well as the long-term components for variable compensation/the Long Term Incentive Plan (LTI), which are now reported under provisions. In the reporting year, the provisions for social plans (severance pay and early retirement), retention costs, liquidation costs of printing centres and compensation payments were utilised in the amount of CHF 9.9 million. Provisions of CHF 4.5 million formed in earlier periods for social plans were reversed.
Other provisions include claims for repayment of short-time working compensation totalling CHF 13.0 million. Following an audit, Seco asserted claims for repayment of short-time work compensation from individual companies in the TX Group. Appeals have been lodged against the repayment claims; the proceedings are currently pending before the Federal Administrative Court. There are currently no indications of further audits by Seco, but such audits remain possible. The increase in other provisions in the current reporting year is mainly attributable to a newly formed provision in connection with a loss-generating contract and a provision for vacant office space.
Pending transactions
There are out-of-home advertising contracts with an obligation to provide future services that target a specific level of revenue in the amount of CHF 189.7 million (previous year: CHF 242.0 million). As in the previous year, the management estimates that the agreed revenue targets will be achieved.
In the current year, as in the previous year, there are no purchase agreements for the procurement of newsprint and magazine paper that relate to future delivery periods.
Sureties, subordinated claims and guarantee obligations in favour of third parties/related parties
As of the balance sheet date, there are sureties, subordinated claims and guarantee obligations to the benefit of related parties and third parties totalling CHF 22.6 million (previous year: CHF 23.4 million). There are no further sureties, subordinated claims or guarantee obligations.
Provisions are only recognised if an obligation exists or appears probable based on a past event and if the amount of such an obligation can be reliably estimated.
Possible obligations and those that cannot be reliably estimated are disclosed as contingent liabilities.
The provision for long-service awards is determined on the basis of actuarial principles. Personnel provisions mainly comprises the outstanding costs for variable remuneration/the Long Term Incentive (LTI) and for the agreed restructuring measures. Therefore, they primarily cover provisions for various social plans. Provisions for restoration costs and inherited pollution include the estimated costs of restoring rented properties to their original state once they have been vacated, and guarantees for the removal of inherited pollution from properties sold. The due dates for restoration costs of rented premises are governed by the terms of the relevant agreements. The provisions for litigation risks relate to current cases. Other provisions include several different items, which, if considered individually, are not material in nature. The outflow of non-current provisions is expected within the next five years. The amount set aside for provisions and the point in time of the resulting cash outflow are based on best estimates and may deviate from actual circumstances in the future.