Personal use of AI is quietly shifting attitudes in insurance. Guidewire's 2026 European Insurance Consumer Survey, drawn from more than 4,000 consumers across Europe including 1,000 in the UK, finds that daily users of AI tools are twice as likely as the broader population to accept automated pricing decisions — suggesting that familiarity, not persuasion, is the real driver of trust.
The headline figure is 30%: the share of UK consumers comfortable with their insurer using AI to make pricing decisions. That rises to 38% for document completion and 39% for AI supporting human call handlers. But the pattern does not hold uniformly. Daily AI users reach 63% acceptance on fully automated policy decisions; the broader UK public sits at 30%.
Consumers identified three conditions for accepting AI in insurance: human intervention (33%), transparency (26%), and third-party regulation (23%). Those preferences hold even among the most enthusiastic AI users: 39% of daily users still want a human kept in the loop, and 30% prioritise transparency.
The findings put insurers in a familiar position — caught between the efficiency gains AI can deliver and the trust requirements customers attach to automated decisions. The sector is at a key stage in determining what will be required to further build trust among consumers, with little year-on-year movement in overall comfort levels.
"AI is playing an increasingly important role in the insurance industry, and customers are becoming more comfortable with its use. Our report shows that when customers clearly see its value, they are significantly more likely to accept AI within the insurance process," said Charles Clarke, Group Vice President at Guidewire.
The survey is Guidewire's sixth annual edition and covers consumer sentiment across the UK, Europe and wider markets, also touching on AI in climate insurance, pet insurance, and generational differences in technology acceptance.
