Vulnerabilities, risks and territorial divides: the challenge of insurance renewal

Paris, the 29 January 2026 - While the French have never felt so exposed to risks (climate, cyber, mobility-related or theft-related) 9th edition of the study "Insurance, mutuals: customer experience & new digital services", produced by Innovation Assurance/Next Content in partnership with Luminess, highlights a major challenge for the sector, that of renew the role of insurance in order to address vulnerabilities perceived as growing, widespread, and unevenly distributed across the territory. In a context of persistent economic, climate, and security uncertainty, the study reveals a persistent discrepancy between the intensity of the fears expressed by policyholders and the level of support they perceive from their insurers.

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Key figures to remember

A widespread increase in the feeling of exposure, with significant regional disparities.

Since the beginning of the 2020s, The feeling of exposure to risk is increasing sharply among the French particularly regarding cyber risks (+74%), climate risks (+55%), theft (+57%), and mobility risks (+48%). But this perception is not not uniform on the territory, particularly with regard to climate risk.
Fears related to storms and high winds are affecting the entire country, with a more pronounced intensity in the north and westConversely, the southeast and southwest have the highest concentration of feeling exposed to the impacts of climate change, including floods, storms, droughts and forest fires.
These results reflect an increasingly tangible reality for policyholders:The risks are no longer abstract, but territorialized, concrete, and experienced on a daily basis.. 

A persistent gap between expressed fears and perceived support

Despite this increase in vulnerabilities, the study highlights a perceived lack of support among policyholders.
Only a quarter of French people report having been contacted by their insurer regarding changes in climate or theft risks. Regarding cybercrime, the area where the feeling of exposure is strongest, only 18% recall receiving any information or prevention advice. When such messages do exist, they seem to have an impact: Nearly 60% of policyholders report having taken into account the prevention advice provided by their insurer or mutual insurance company..

Preserving fairness in the face of fraud: a central challenge of the insurance promise

Faced with risks perceived as increasingly systemic, policyholders expect insurance providers to fully play their role as a collective safety net. The question of fraud particularly highlights this issue. A large majority of insured individuals (88%) say they are in favor of strengthening controlsprovided that these measures are fair, transparent, and targeted, and that they do not penalize honest policyholders. Furthermore, a quarter of policyholders identify fraud as one of the three main reasons for their fraudulent activities. main reasons for the increase in insurance costsThe main cause remains the evolution of climate risks. These results highlight a strong expectation: restoring meaning to insuranceby positioning it as an actor of protection, prevention and equity, capable of responding to contemporary fears without abandoning trust.

Digital technology, AI and customer journeys: towards hybrid models

The adoption of digital services is progressing rapidly: 

• 53% Insured individuals have downloaded an insurance application;
• 32% have already used a chatbot;
• 72% have already used generative AI, including 22% for insurance-related uses.

In this context, the challenge is to to offer AI-based digital assistants (chatbots or similar tools) that are reliable, integrated into the user journey, transparent and useful for simple tasks, with the possibility of gradually evolving towards more engaging uses.

Digital identity: a strategic opportunity for insurance

FranceConnect is widely adopted, while the European wallet remains largely unknown. Yet 41% of policyholders would consider depositing their insurance documents there. If the security level is high, certificates, proof of coverage, and contractual documents are among the most expected uses. For insurers, digital identity and secure document management represent a a concrete lever for simplifying processes and strengthening trust.

The challenge now is to reaffirm the fundamental role of insurance.

Study methodology    
This survey was conducted in December 2025 among 1,072 French people, aged 18 to 85, customers of at least one insurance or mutual company, representative of the population connected to the Internet according to the criteria of age, sex and socio-professional category.

About Luminess

Luminess is a French technology company, operating as a software publisher, business process outsourcing (BPO) specialist, and digital services provider (ESN). It supports players in the banking, insurance, mutual, and public sectors in the digitalization and security of their critical processes. Through its intelligent document processing, fraud prevention, digital identity, and AI solutions, Luminess designs reliable and compliant processes to protect policyholders. Its solutions currently process the data of more than a quarter of the French population, contributing to a sovereign, secure, and sustainable digital world.