When it comes to car insurance - most DEFINITELY! Car insurance fraud is normally associated with the intentional crashing of cars or exaggerating the level of damage that occurred in an accident. However, you are at risk of insurance fraud should you tell a small lie when making a claim or renewing your policy.
For example, supposing you leave your vehicle without securing it (locking the doors, leaving the keys in) would you mention that to your insurer if your car gets stolen?
Customers at moneysupermarket.com were asked that very question. The results showing that one in ten drivers wouldn’t tell the truth to their insurers. One in seven drivers aged 18 - 34 were seen as the biggest liars, confessing they wouldn’t tell the whole story.
A look across the country reveals that motorists in the North West are the most dishonest of all, with 11 per cent admitting they would never tell their insurer the truth. This compares with just five per cent of motorists over in Northern Ireland and the South West of England.
“It’s shocking to see there are so many potential fraudsters behind the wheel who are willing to deceive their insurer to guarantee pay out on a claim. While I understand the current climate means finances are tight, lying to your insurer to make sure a claim goes through is not only illegal but it could leave you un-insurable in the future; I would advise any driver considering it to think twice.” said Steve Sweeney, head of car insurance at moneysupermarket.com. “I can understand how frustrating a moment of carelessness can be for a motorist, but this is still no excuse to lie to your insurer. We are all experiencing an increase in the cost of car insurance premiums, and much of this is driven by the cost of fraud to insurers. Motorists should be completely honest on claims forms, and more importantly, by making sure you secure your vehicle properly, you are cutting your chances significantly of needing to make a claim.”
410 million a year is the estimated cost of insurance fraud to motorists, this is effectively an added 44 to every policy. The increase in personal injury claims is also contributing for price increases. “There has been an escalation in our compensation culture, imported from America. In the past, if you had a knock or a bump and were left with a sore neck, you would take a paracetamol. Now, personal injury lawyers encourage you to sue.” Said Ian Crowder from the AA.
Personal injury claims are estimated to cost the insurance industry roughly 1 billion per year which is increasing costs of motor insurance policies by 40 a year. The Association of British Insurers discovered the average personal injury claim stands at around 2,430, however insurers are having to pay an extra 2,100 in legal expenses.
Until as a nation we start being more honest, it would appear that our car insurance policies seem set to rise.
Moneysupermarket.com is a great way of finding a cheap deal on everything from car insurance for young people to the best pet insurance.