Biba 2026: Commercial insurance is too complex to automate but AI can still transform it

Artificial intelligence (AI) may be reshaping commercial insurance, but it will not replace underwriting expertise any time soon, according to Aviva’s managing director of commercial and chief distribution officer Dave Martin.

Speaking during a session at the 2026 Biba Conference on improving outcomes in commercial lines, Martin argued that the real value of AI lies not in removing people from the process, but in helping brokers and underwriters manage growing complexity, close protection gaps and make better decisions faster.

Commercial insurance, he said, remains fundamentally different from personal lines because of the sheer variation in risk.

“In commercial, there’s not even enough barbers in the UK to auto rate accurately,” Martin told delegates. “Statistically, that’s why we still need underwriters.”

Aviva is using AI and data enrichment tools to support underwriting decisions rather than replace them.

Martin explained how the insurer has developed technology capable of calculating more accurate property sums insured and assessing business interruption exposures to tackle one of the market’s biggest challenges – underinsurance.

“40% of businesses in the UK are underinsured,” he said, pointing to gaps not only in property cover, but also in turnover declarations and wage roll calculations.

Some underinsurance is deliberate, he acknowledged, but much of it stems from customers simply not understanding how to value their businesses correctly.

That creates what Martin described as both a protection gap and perception gap.

“If the client made the claim, the client must have believed it was covered,” he said. “So, the question is, what could we have done differently?”

Martin said AI-driven enrichment and better data sharing between insurers and brokers can help reduce those misunderstandings before a loss occurs. Since launching enhanced data platforms last year, Aviva has improved the quality of information captured at quote stage across thousands of commercial submissions.

AI to remove friction

While concerns remain across the market that AI could “dumb down” underwriting, Martin insisted the technology works best when it removes administrative burdens and gives experienced underwriters more time to focus on decision making.

He said: “We’re trying to get all the information in front of underwriters that we possibly can.”

Martin highlighted Aviva’s internally developed AI assistant, Oasis, which allows underwriters and claims handlers to query underwriting guidance and policy wording instantly.

“If there’s a storm claim and a tree falls on a fence, the claims handler can ask whether that’s covered under the wording,” he explained.

“The AI brings back the underwriting position and explains it.”

Fleet submissions 

The insurer is also using AI to process fleet submissions automatically, reducing the need for manual data entry.

According to Martin, the process has delivered a 25% efficiency saving while reducing errors linked to vehicle registration and MID database updates.

“It’s totally hands-free,” he said. “No one’s keying vehicles anymore.”

Despite those efficiency gains, Martin repeatedly stressed that underwriting judgement remains essential in commercial lines because of the complexity and uniqueness of many risks.

“We will always need underwriters, because we need underwriters to make the decision,” he said.