In a bid to prevent legal confusion and the discouraging of innovation, Insurance Europe has urged the European Commission (EC) to withdraw its proposed Artificial Intelligence Liability Directive (AILD).
While appreciating the EC’s commitment to promoting compensation for AI-related damages, the federation expresses concerns that the current proposal may lead to an increase in compliance burden for businesses and potential confusion among consumers regarding their rights.
Insurance Europe argues the proposed AILD framework, if adopted, could create legal uncertainty instead of increasing consumer protection.
It could also increase compliance burdens for businesses due to its unclear scope and overlap with existing EU legislation like the AI Act and the revised Product Liability Directive, which could also confuse consumers about their rights.
Additionally, the proposal’s increased burden of proof on AI providers and users would also harm, rather than support, innovation and encourages litigation due to vague thresholds. This also deters insurers from providing coverage, the organisation noted.
Moreover, the EC argues that if the proposal is maintained and an eventual review – five years after its transposition – favours mandatory insurance, contractual freedom should be maintained now and in the future.
However, the organisation highlighted, mandatory insurance can only work for mature and homogenous markets, and this is not currently the case. Insurers can only support AI innovation within a framework guaranteeing contractual freedom.
In its response, the EC identified specific areas within the proposal that it believes should be reconsidered, if maintained, in order to preserve legal certainty, promote competitiveness, and foster innovation, ultimately benefiting European consumers.
