Quarter Of Motorists Invalidate Their Car Insurance By Lying

18 April 2008 / by Rachael Stiles

More than a quarter of British motorists have admitted that they lie on their car insurance application forms, potentially invalidating their cover.

Insurance.co.uk has found that 26 percent of UK drivers have given false information on their applications, with the variety of lies they tell ranging from seemingly innocent ones, such as the one in 10 drivers which claim they keep their car in a secure area, or the one in 20 which lie about the distances they drive, what they use their car for, and the value of their car.

Other misstatements on drivers’ car insurance forms, however, could have much more severe consequences, like the one per cent of motorists which admit to telling lies about their address, penalty points they have, and other serious criminal offences which could affect their car cover.

The research also revealed something of British moral sensibilities, as it found that almost half of the nation puts insurance fraud on a par with stealing a bar of chocolate or travelling on public transport without a valid ticket. Furthermore, despite the number of people who admitted to lying on their insurance applications, 98 per cent said that they consider themselves to be honest individuals.

“Lying to an insurer is often considered to be a ‘victimless crime’, but this is far from the truth.” warns Steve Grainger, head of insurance.co.uk. “Many motorists would never dream of illegally driving without insurance, but they seem to be blissfully unaware that entering inaccurate information on a motor insurance application could make their policy worthless, leaving themselves and those around them at considerable risk.”

He added that while it is understandable that drivers want to get the cheapest possible car insurance premium they can, this should not be done at the expense of the cover’s validity, and that simply comparing car insurance quotes can turn up the most competitive deals.

Meanwhile, elephant.co.uk has found that 34 per cent of drivers knowingly ignore a number of rules of the road, such as wearing a seatbelt, breaking the speed limit, driving through red lights, not using indicators when turning, and not stopping at pedestrian crossings.

© Fair Investment Company Ltd