Warnings for drivers who lie to get cheaper car insurance

More Australian drivers are doing this when applying for cheaper car insurance and risk not only having their claims rejected but being sued.

Thousands of Australians are at risk of having their car insurance claims rejected, new research suggests, with one in six respondents to a recent survey admitting they lied in their application.

Finder, a comparison website for financial services, utilities and shopping, asked more than 760 policyholders about their truthfulness when applying for car insurance last month.

The percentage of those who confessed to telling porkies has risen from 8 per cent in 2018 to 13 per cent, the company reports.

Examples of the mistruths include falsely claiming their car is parked in a garage overnight – instead of out on the street – failing to list another driver on the policy and not reporting being involved in a minor accident.

Not admitting minor accidents is among lies told by drivers when applying for car insurance, according to a survey. Picture: iStock

Finder said Generation Z respondents (young drivers aged up to 24) were the worst offenders with 32 per cent admitted fibbers compared with only 3 per cent of Baby Boomers (those aged between 56 and 74).

“Lying on an insurance application can be an expensive mistake that will come back to haunt you,” the company’s insurance specialist Taylor Blackburn said.

“Failing to declare information in your application can be considered nondisclosure.

“Consequences could range from having your policy cancelled or claim denied to being sued for insurance fraud.”

Finder said men and women who responded to the survey were equally likely to have provided incorrect information, while Victorians were the nation’s least truthful when applying for a car insurance policy.

COMPARE YOUR OPTIONS: finder.com.au

Originally published as Warnings for drivers who lie to get cheaper car insurance