In 2026, it is essential for insurers to have strong data foundations, seamless connectivity, and robust governance to support consistent, fast, and scalable underwriting decisions, according to insurtech firm Send Technology Solutions Ltd (Send).
In its recently published Underwriting Trends Report 2026, Send describes the year as a critical inflection point for underwriting strategy, performance, and decision-making across the global commercial and specialty insurance market. The report draws on insights from insurers, brokers, reinsurers, and market experts across the UK, US, and international markets.
Send noted that insurers are facing softer pricing, rising operational complexity, intensifying regulatory oversight, and the rapid industrialisation of AI. Together, these forces are reshaping how underwriters assess risk, manage portfolios, and collaborate with brokers, MGAs, and reinsurers.
The report found that speed remains a key priority in underwriting, but it is increasingly accompanied by expectations around consistency, transparency, and control.
It also highlighted a mounting talent challenge. An ageing workforce and strong demand for new professionals are forcing insurers to balance attraction and retention with the need to equip teams for a more data- and AI-driven environment. Automation is reshaping underwriting workflows, creating both opportunities and risks for knowledge transfer and skill development.
Technology adoption across the market is maturing. AI is beginning to influence underwriting outcomes in parts of the industry, particularly where insurers have invested in clean data, effective ingestion, and strong governance. At the same time, evolving distribution models and reinsurance structures are placing new demands on operating models built for a less connected era.
Set against geopolitical, climate, and regulatory pressures, the report highlighted a widening gap between insurers strengthening their underwriting foundations and those constrained by legacy processes—an imbalance with implications that may extend beyond the current market cycle.
Andy Moss, Co-founder and CEO of Send, said, “Underwriting in 2026 is less about predicting the next market turn and more about building the capability to respond, consistently and at speed, to whatever comes next. What we’re seeing across the market is clear: strong data foundations, seamless connectivity and robust governance are now essential to supporting underwriting judgement at scale.”
