More than a million people have given false information to insurers, according to Sainsbury’s Finance.

Research from the bank also found that a further 12.59m people admitted to guessing information that was required when taking out an insurance policy. Sainsbury’s Finance has warned such people that their policies could be invalidated as a result of having given incorrect information.

Home insurance proved to be the area attracting the highest number of dishonest policy holders, with 18% of people admitting to giving false information in the past. This was followed by car insurance, an area in which 15% of people have done the same.

The main reason for giving inaccurate information, cited by 11% of people, was not having enough time to check the correct information.

Steve Johnson, head of insurance at Sainsbury’s Finance, said: “It really is quite concerning that so many people seem to think it doesn’t matter if they take a guess at the information requested at the point of taking out cover. Although it may seem like a good idea in an effort to save time, it could become a real headache later when they find they have invalidated their claim.

“If unsure of the answer to a question when getting a quote or buying cover we would encourage people to always take the time to go back and check any details, you can always phone back or gather all your personal documents together and apply online, in some cases you can retrieve online quotes and modify them later.”