Many motorists possess invalid car insurance

Recent surveys indicate that a significant proportion of British motorists may possess invalid car insurance. According to a study by the price comparison website uSwitch there could be as many as 2.5 million vehicle owners within the United Kingdom holding invalid insurance policies. This has resulted in fresh concerns that British drivers may be poorly protected compared to motorists elsewhere.

However, uSwitch's data reveals a number of other worrying trends as well. A staggering 6% of cars currently on British roads are completely uninsured whilst another 10% of cars do not receive adequate protection because owners provide insurers with false information in order to minimize the cost of covering their vehicle. According to uSwitch, some 750,000 motorists fail to state driving convictions when filling out their insurance forms. Even more shocking is the fact that 1.5 million motorists admitted having chosen to "deliberately lie" about their personal details when purchasing car insurance. Those consumers who choose to engage in such practices act on the belief that their behaviour is justified, according to Aron Thompson of uSwitch. He suggests that motorists often lie because they consider car insurance a 'grudge purchase.' However, he added that whilst "to the consumer, this may seem like a little white lie to save money, in reality, it could end up teaching the driver a costly lesson." Even though it is not always easy to detect such deception, dishonest motorists risk grave consequences if found out. False statements can cause an insurance claim to fail – a costly outcome if your car is damaged.

Lack of effective insurance is not limited solely to car cover however. In a related development, a survey by the consumer protection organisation Bright Grey indicated that a significant percentage of British families "have no critical illness, income protection or life insurance." Insufficient car insurance therefore appears to be symptomatic of a far more serious phenomenon within the UK insurance sector.

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