Predictions 2026: Wakam Sees Challenges Ahead - And AI That Actually Helps People Do Better Work
5 January 2026
AI won't wipe out the insurance workforce. It will clean up the busywork, tighten oversight, and give teams sharper tools. That's the clear thread running through Wakam UK's view of 2026: climate risk is a constant, fraud is surging, personal lines are consolidating, and specialty is where speed and discipline win. The carriers that simplify and empower their people will pull ahead.
Climate risk is now a baseline, not an anomaly
Weather volatility isn't a blip anymore. The past two years pushed records on heat, rainfall and flood alerts, with UK property claims hitting £4.1 billion. Last year was widely reported as the warmest on record, and the pattern isn't easing. See the latest global temperature context from Copernicus.
Translation for insurers: pricing needs to assume higher frequency and severity. Underwriting needs tighter flood and peril modelling. Distribution needs quicker rate updates. Slow cycles lose money.
Fraud is spiking - precision matters
Fraud losses are moving up sharply. In H1 2025, one major carrier flagged £92.6 million in detected fraud, up 34%. UK Government puts the total fraud burden near £8.3 billion. With the new "failure to prevent fraud" offence coming into force, sloppy controls won't fly. Read the policy detail on GOV.UK.
What wins in 2026: real-time detection, explainable checks, and audit trails that actually stand up. You need both prevention and recovery strategies baked into claims, underwriting, and bordereaux oversight.
Market structure: big gets bigger in personal lines, MGAs expand in specialty
Consolidation is accelerating at the top of personal lines. Scale defends on distribution, marketing and unit cost. Meanwhile, MGAs are adding capacity, launching new lines and taking share in specialty. Deals are clustering where expertise and speed matter.
The implication is clear: personal lines will keep consolidating, while growth and innovation tilt to specialty. MGAs that underwrite with discipline, move fast, and work underserved niches will gain ground.
Wakam UK's view from the top
Mark Christer, CEO, Wakam UK: 2026 is where climate pressure, fraud risk and softening rates converge. Speed matters. Data matters. Oversight and direct access to decision-makers matter. Carriers clinging to rigid structures will feel the squeeze. Those that simplify, specialise and back their teams to act will turn pressure into advantage.
- Shorten the loop from data to decision. Weekly refits beat quarterly committees.
- Push pricing updates to the edge with guardrails, not gatekeepers.
- Treat oversight as continuous, not retrospective.
Claims: the real AI shift is oversight, not just case handling
Dean Witherington, Chief Claims Officer, Wakam UK: The industry loves to talk chatbots, triage and faster decisions. Useful, yes. But the bigger shift is AI-driven oversight across the portfolio: spotting patterns early, finding inconsistencies, monitoring quality in real time, and feeding performance feedback straight to handlers and suppliers.
This isn't about headcount cuts. Teams have been told clearly: no one is losing their job because of AI. The goal is better judgement and fewer blind spots.
- Deploy anomaly detection across FNOL, estimates and supplier invoices.
- Run continuous quality scoring on files, not monthly dip sampling.
- Trigger targeted coaching when decision variance spikes.
- Automate simple settlements and policyholder updates to free handlers for complex work.
If you're upskilling claims and ops on practical AI, this curated list is a solid starting point: Latest AI courses.
People strategy: flexibility as a performance tool
Vicky Gardner, Head of HR, Wakam UK: Many large employers are rolling back hybrid policies, nudging teams from two days in-office to three or four. That risks losing good people for little gain.
Wakam UK is holding the line on genuine flexibility. Teams choose the pattern that helps them perform. Trust, clear outcomes, and strong feedback rhythms matter more than badge swipes.
- Set team-level service and quality targets, not blanket attendance rules.
- Codify how decisions get made remotely so speed doesn't dip.
- Use in-office time for collaboration and coaching, not status updates.
What to do now
- Rebase cat and flood assumptions to today's weather, not yesterday's averages.
- Stand up an AI oversight layer for claims and bordereaux before peak season.
- Tighten fraud controls with explainable checks and full audit logs.
- Pick two specialty niches and build MGA-style operating speed around them.
- Remove approval layers that don't change outcomes; keep the ones that catch real risk.
- Protect flexibility, measure output, and invest in manager coaching.
The signal for 2026 is simple: simplify structure, raise the pace, and put AI to work where it lifts judgement and quality. The carriers that move first will set the standard everyone else has to match.
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