In this episode, Technology Partner Tom Maasland and Litigation Partner Andrew Horne examine AI through an insurance risk lens, discussing what insurers are most concerned about, how those concerns are evolving, and what professional firms and businesses need to do to stay insurable as AI use becomes mainstream.
[01:07] Tom and Andy reflect on how recent insurer conversations have shifted from traditional cyber security concerns to AI taking centre stage, with insurers increasingly focused on how AI related risks translate into real world liabilities and claims exposure.
[02:51] Andy talks through insurers’ concerns that professionals may place reliance on AI generated work without adequate human oversight, highlighting cases where hallucinated outputs have resulted in court sanctions, regulatory referrals, reputational harm, and financial loss.
[06:35] They then examine other examples of AI failures beyond the legal profession, noting some high profile examples from consulting, health, and retail where poorly supervised AI tools or use of AI has caused harm, embarrassment, or safety risks, reinforcing insurers’ fears about unintended consequences when AI systems lack adequate guardrails.
[09:44] Tom and Andy consider what happens when confidential and privileged information is entered into generative AI systems from an insurance risk perspective, prompting discussion on data training, contractual protections, enterprise grade closed circuit AI tools, and the growing risk of IP infringement or third-party confidentiality breaches.
[12:17] Andy discusses insurers’ expectations for clear AI guidelines and policies, staff training and human oversight, noting that despite increasing AI adoption, many New Zealand businesses are still well behind on risk frameworks and compliance as reported in Datacom’s 2025 State of AI Index Research Report.
[13:55] Lastly, they consider how AI insurers might assess AI risk in the future, highlighting that they are likely to follow the cyber insurance model, asking increasingly detailed questions about AI purpose, governance, security, provenance, and regulatory awareness, with potential impacts on premiums, exclusions, and coverage availability.
Information in this episode is accurate as at the date of recording, 30 January 2026.
Please contact Andrew Horne, Tom Maasland or our Litigation team if you need legal advice and guidance on any of the topics discussed in the episode.
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Additional resources
Datacom's 2025 State of AI Index Research Report
MinterEllisonRuddWatts publication: AI risks: What do insurers want to know about your use of AI?
