The General Insurance Association of Korea (GIAK) has launched the financial sector's first consumer protection council in line with financial authorities' push to strengthen consumer safeguards, reported the Chosun Daily.
Speaking at the launch function, GIAK Chairman Lee Byung-rhae said that the industry has established an autonomous body to drive fundamental change with a self-strengthening mindset in response to the era’s demand for enhanced financial consumer protection.
“We expect this to become a driving force for restoring trust and strengthening competitiveness for sustainable growth,” he said.
The inaugural meeting of the council focused on: improving modifications to the automobile accident fault ratio recognition criteria and introducing an AI-based advertising review system.
Revising fault ratio calculation standards
GIAK operates the nation’s sole official guideline for 254 accident types, referencing court rulings and laws, but the current system adjusts base fault ratios by adding or subtracting modifiers for factors such as night time visibility, overtaking lanes, and sudden pedestrian entry.
However, critics argue the modifiers are overly fragmented and subjective, leading to inconsistent fault ratios for similar accidents. The council agreed to reorganise modifiers around core categories and clarify subjective elements. Future revisions will incorporate specific improvement plans developed through industry task forces and research projects.
Real-time AI monitoring of insurance ads
The council’s second agenda addressed implementing an AI-powered advertising review system. Online advertising reviews surged from 8,629 cases (49.6% of total) in 2022 to 19,288 cases (65.6%) in 2025. The council plans to deploy an AI system for initial screening of prohibited expressions and potentially misleading phrases, followed by final verification by GIAK’s review team.
The rollout will occur in three phases: Phase One (completed within the year) for print and online text ads; Phase Two (post-2027) for video ads’ audio and subtitles; and Phase Three for full-screen displays. Real-time monitoring via AI-based web crawling will track ads on platforms like YouTube to pre-emptively block illegal content.
GIAK will collaborate closely with relevant agencies on regulatory or policy-related issues and expedite implementable measures through its Consumer Protection Chief Officer meetings.