Policyholders want helpers

Property and casualty insurance customers are warming to artificial intelligence tools, but most still do not want a machine making the final call on a claim or policy. (insurity.com) Insurity said 39% of U.S. respondents in its 2026 survey thought it was a good idea for insurers to use AI to improve service, up from 20% in 2025 and 29% in 2024. The company said the survey was conducted online in February 2026 with more than 1,000 U.S. adults. (insurity.com) Use of AI outside insurance is now mainstream: Insurity said 84% of Americans use AI tools in daily life, and 42% said they use them every day. But 36% said they would still be less likely to buy from an insurer that publicly uses AI, down from 44% a year earlier. (insurity.com) Property and casualty insurance covers risks like car crashes, house fires, storm damage, and liability lawsuits. In that business, AI can sort documents, flag fraud, summarize damage reports, and speed up customer service before a human adjuster or underwriter signs off. (insurancebusinessmag.com) That distinction now sits at the center of insurers’ AI plans. Insurance Business reported that policyholders are more comfortable with AI as an assistant than as a decision-maker, even as carriers increase spending on the technology in claims, underwriting, and service operations. (insurancebusinessmag.com) The industry is also under pressure to explain what it is doing. Post reported that Alexandra Mousavizadeh, chief executive of Evident, said insurers that stay quiet about their AI strategy and results risk falling behind firms that communicate earlier and more clearly. (postonline.co.uk) Consultants and software vendors have been making the same case in broader terms. Deloitte said insurers entered 2026 facing higher customer expectations and AI modernization demands, while McKinsey wrote in July 2025 that only a small group of insurers had captured outsized value from AI so far. (deloitte.com) (mckinsey.com) The caution is not only about customer sentiment. Lawyers and trade publications have warned about “silent AI,” meaning AI-related risks that are not clearly included or excluded in policy language, which can leave insurers and buyers arguing over coverage after a loss. (kennedyslaw.com) (insuranceday.com) For now, the survey points to a narrower path: use AI to make insurance faster and clearer, but keep a person accountable for judgment. That is a less flashy pitch than full automation, and it is the one customers appear more willing to buy. (insurity.com)