Self-driving cars, humanoid robots and factory automation carry risks that standard auto, property and liability policies don’t usually cover. Insurers are now building a new line of business around machines that drive, move and decide on their own. Some of the new policies pay for the fallout when a robot breaks down, including the cost of a replacement worker or a rental machine.
Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance, the domestic arm of Japan’s largest nonlife insurer, said Monday (Oct. 26) it will introduce AI robot insurance in November for wheeled, four-legged and humanoid robots. The policy pays to repair or replace a robot damaged in a collision or natural disaster, covers injury and property damage claims from third parties and pays the wages of substitute workers or the rental fees for stand-in robots while the machine is out of service. Premiums are set individually based on each robot’s use and operating environment. They will run about 20% above those for conventional industrial equipment, Nikkei Asia reported.
The closest U.S. parallel comes from Axis Insurance, which built a program for companies that make and deploy autonomous robots. It covers production losses when a software update or sensor fault takes a robot offline, even with no physical damage, PYMNTS reported in June.
Tesla Self-Driving Miles Cost 50% Less to Insure at Lemonade
Lemonade, the New York-based digital insurer, introduced autonomous vehicle insurance in Arizona in January, with per-mile rates about 50% lower when Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) system is engaged, TechCrunch reported at the time. A Tesla already costs an average of $4,512 a year to insure with full coverage, against a $3,037 national average, Insurance.com found.
The discount rests on a safety bet. Lemonade Co-Founder Shai Wininger said Tesla’s data, combined with Lemonade’s own claims, showed the full self-driving mode made driving about twice as safe for the average driver, Automotive World reported. Lemonade uses Tesla’s Fleet API, with the owner’s permission, to sort software-driven miles from human-driven ones and bill each at its own rate. Tesla’s own insurance, by comparison, cuts premiums on some coverages by up to 10% for full self-driving use in Arizona, Florida and Texas.
Fleets need a different product. Allianz Partners, the insurance and assistance arm of Allianz SE, said Sept. 16 it will supply Waymo with motor fleet insurance, product liability coverage and new insurance models built for autonomous mobility platforms as robotaxi units prepare to launch in London and Munich. Waymo’s head of risk and insurance, Tilia Gode, said the operational foundation is “just as critical as the technology behind the Waymo Driver.”
Chinese Insurers Match Robot Coverage to Rental Days
We’d love to be your preferred source for news.
Please add us to your preferred sources list so our news, data and interviews show up in your feed. Thanks!
China Pacific Insurance, known as CPIC, sells humanoid robot coverage by the day, week or month so the policy matches the length of a rental job, China Daily reported.
Sharebot, a rental platform launched by humanoid maker AGIBOT, rents machines for as little as 3,500 yuan, or about $517, a day, PYMNTS reported. The People’s Insurance Company of China has covered Sharebot’s robots since December 2025 without requiring a fixed operating address, because the machines move between customers. By April 24, more than 1,000 robots on the platform carried coverage totaling more than 200 million yuan, or about $28 million, Sharebot said.
Insurers outside mainland China are building their own products. Zurich Insurance’s Hong Kong unit launched embedded repair coverage for corporate robot fleets with InsurTech firm YAS in June. HSB, part of Munich Re, introduced AI liability insurance for small businesses in March. In the U.S., Relm Insurance offers coverage for bodily injury and property damage tied to AI systems, PYMNTS reported.
38 States Write Liability Rules for Autonomous Vehicles
The Connecticut Office of Legislative Research found that 38 states have laws addressing liability coverage for operating or testing autonomous vehicles. None requires more than $10 million. Most of the laws apply to Level 4 and 5 vehicles on SAE International’s automation scale, which drive themselves without a person at the wheel.
California requires manufacturers to show $5 million in insurance, a surety bond or self-insurance before testing or operating autonomous vehicles on public roads. Alabama mandates at least $2 million in liability coverage for automated commercial trucks running without a driver on board. Arkansas sets a $750,000 minimum.
For manufacturers and fleet operators, coverage becomes one more operating cost alongside hardware, software, maintenance and energy.
For all PYMNTS digital transformation coverage, subscribe to the daily Digital Transformation Newsletter.
Add as Preferred Source
