Public services in several countries are experiencing substantial increases in applications and complaints, a trend linked to the growing use of AI tools that simplify form filling and complaint filing. In the UK, complaints to the housing ombudsman more than doubled from 2,600 in 2022 to over 7,000 last year. Similarly, the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau reported a fivefold increase in complaints during the same period. Brazil and Germany have also seen notable rises in judicial and parliamentary petitions.
Researcher Chris Schmitz has been studying this phenomenon, which he terms "agentic flooding." In a forthcoming paper for the AI Ethics and Society conference, Schmitz analyzes 84 cases across 11 jurisdictions, finding consistent evidence that AI is reshaping how people engage with public services. Although his research stops short of attributing the surge directly to AI, the timing and patterns suggest a strong correlation with the diffusion of AI technologies since 2022.
Schmitz explains that AI tools are lowering barriers for individuals to submit claims that might previously have been too complex or time-consuming. For example, users can now simply upload a photo of a letter to an AI app and receive a well-formed response quickly, reducing the administrative burden that often discourages applications.
This increase in volume parallels the experience of bug bounty programs, which saw a flood of low-quality AI-generated security reports last year. However, unlike those largely irrelevant submissions, most new public service applications appear to be legitimate claims from real people.
The surge poses challenges for public agencies, which must handle significantly more requests without proportional increases in resources. Yet, Schmitz views this as an opportunity to rethink and improve public service processes for the AI era, potentially making them more accessible and efficient.
He emphasizes that this moment could lead to a fundamental redesign of how social services operate, leveraging AI to assist users effectively rather than simply managing increased workloads. The goal is to create systems where AI helps people navigate complex procedures, ultimately improving access to benefits and justice.