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Insurance

These fibs could land you with a fraud charge

Joanna Faith
Written By:
Joanna Faith
Posted:
Updated:
16/01/2019

Almost 450,000 Brits last year risked invalidating their car insurance or even being prosecuted for fraud by lying or withholding information on their application in an attempt to reduce their premiums.

When applying for or renewing car insurance, drivers are obliged to disclose information and truthfully answer the questions put to them.  Insurers use this information to decide whether to offer insurance to the applicant, on what terms and at what price.

If subsequently an insurer discovers that information has been withheld or given dishonestly then they may reduce or refuse to settle a claim and/or cancel the policy.

If the driver is found to have been fraudulent then the insurer may treat the policy as if it had never existed.  The applicant could also end-up in court and find they are unable to get insurance in the future. GoCompare, the comparison website, has revealed five common lies that could invalidate your car insurance:

How the car is used

There are three types of car usage: social; social and commuting;and business. Social usage excludes any travel to and from work or other business use so, if you use your car to get to work then you need to make sure your policy covers commuting. Insurers tend to charge a higher premium for commuting and business-listed vehicles because drivers are more likely to be on the road during the busiest times of day.  

‘Fronting’

To get cheaper cover for a young driver, some parents arrange insurance for their son or daughter, listing them as an additional driver as opposed to the main driver. This is known as ‘fronting’ and insurers consider it fraud. The person who uses the car most often should be listed as the main driver on the policy, additional drivers should only be added if they drive the car occasionally.

Occupation

Your occupation and the way you describe it will impact on the price you pay for car insurance. You will also need to tell your insurer if you change your job.

Withholding information about previous claims or damage to your car

In addition to more serious accidents, you should declare details of minor knocks and dents – even if you didn’t claim for the accident.

Failing to own-up to penalty points or other driving convictions

Deliberately failing to disclose driving offences is fraudulent.  Drivers should declare penalty points and any other motoring convictions when applying for a policy.  Drivers should also notify their insurer immediately of any penalty points received during the term of their cover – rather than waiting until it comes up for renewal.