Some consumers are early adopters, while others want more checks and privacy. Some people are resistant and prefer the more friendly phone calls and emails. Everyone’s experience with insurance companies is different, and AI is not a magic pill that will cure all ills. This is the word.
Guidewire (NYSE: GWRE) today released the latest edition of its annual survey of European insurance customers, revealing customer attitudes toward insurers’ use of artificial intelligence (AI) and identifying opportunities for insurers to continue to earn their trust.
of 2026 Guidewire European Insurance Consumer Survey We found that UK customers feel favorably towards insurers that use AI, as long as human oversight and strong safety measures are in place. Almost a third (30%) said they were satisfied with their insurer using AI tools to price their insurance policies.
If customers can see the benefits of an insurance company’s use of AI, acceptance will increase. For example, 38% agree that they are satisfied with AI helping them with insurance documents and policy applications, and 39% say they are satisfied with AI helping them answer questions from human call handlers (both numbers unchanged from last year’s survey results).
With customer comfort with how insurers are using AI remaining largely unchanged year-over-year, the industry is at a critical stage in determining what it needs to do to further build trust among consumers and responsibly advance AI adoption. UK consumers highlighted three key priorities, including human intervention (33%), transparency (26%) and third-party regulation to rein in technology (23%).
The study also found that customers are twice as likely to accept the use of AI by insurance companies as personal use of AI increases.
- People who use AI regularly are twice as likely as the general public to trust automated insurance pricing. 63 per cent of people who use AI tools on a daily basis are satisfied with policy-making being ‘human-free’, a sentiment shared by just 30 per cent of the UK population.
- 80 per cent of people who use AI regularly say they are satisfied with the technology that helps them fill out insurance forms or complete insurance policy applications, compared to 38 per cent of UK consumers overall.
- More than half (59.5 per cent) of people who use AI daily are comfortable with the technology determining and processing insurance claims, or determining claim amounts, compared to 27 per cent of UK consumers overall.
- Even among those who use AI on a daily basis, transparency (30.6 percent) and keeping humans in the loop (39 percent) continue to score highly as prerequisites for trust.
Charles Clark, Group Vice President, Guidewire, said: “The role of AI in the insurance industry is becoming increasingly important, and customers are becoming increasingly comfortable with its use. Our report shows that when customers clearly understand the value of AI, they are much more likely to accept it within their insurance processes.”
“To further strengthen acceptance, customers are demanding greater transparency, regulation, and human oversight. Insurers must work with each other, technology providers, and regulators to meet these expectations and build lasting trust in how they use AI, whether these capabilities come from their own core platforms, built-in assistants, or broader AI partners.s”
Michael Cook, partner at PwC, said: “These findings confirm the clear desire of UK customers for a balanced approach to AI in insurance, ensuring that human judgment remains essential to decision-making, particularly as the use of AI moves beyond delivering efficiency into more value-added operations and ultimately operates differently.”
“As AI becomes more integrated into daily life, insurers will need to prioritize transparency and robust regulation to maintain consumer trust, including putting in place the right governance and frameworks and exploring the role of AI to ‘manage AI.’ Striking this balance will be key to unlocking the full potential of AI in delivering fairer, more personalized insurance services and moving to a completely different way of operating that combines human and agent workforces.”
