Self-driving cars expected to shake up insurance industry

In a future of autonomous vehicles, the industry expects ride-hailing services could eliminate the need for many to carry insurance at all. Ann Arbor -- Insurers are bracing for change as they plan for a future with self-driving cars. Although the hope is that autonomous vehicles will decrease traffic incidents and improve road safety, it could take years before the benefits of expensive-to-repair, technology-packed vehicles reduce insurance premiums. Meanwhile, autonomous vehicles promise to shift liability for accidents from drivers to the car itself, threatening insurers' traditional business model. "There's angst, anxiety, worry (because) ... we're heavily in the auto business," Neil Alldredge, senior vice president of corporate affairs for the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, told auto insurers earlier this month at an Ann Arbor conference on the topic.