Thirteen per cent of parents surveyed by AA admitted to this practice - known as ‘fronting’ - and said they were fronting for their kids or had done so in the past.
Of the 3,165 responses collected, 4.6 per cent said they currently do it, while 9 per cent said they had fronted in the past.
This is in an effort to reduce the cost of their insurance premiums. The cost of car insurance premiums have risen considerably, by 38 per cent in the past year alone.
“While it may be tempting to resort to lying to your insurer to reduce your premiums, doing so is never worth the risk,” said Conor Faughnan, Director of Consumer Affairs at AA Car Insurance.
He outlined the consequences for parents and their children that engaged in fronting: “What may appear to be a harmless white lie can result in an insurer refusing to pay out in the event of an accident.
“If the insurer believes that fronting has taken place and that the car was mostly used by someone other than the person listed on the insurance policy as the main driver they are within their rights to refuse to cover any damage, with the exception of third party injury, resulting from an accident and even cancel the policy.”
Those aged between 46 and 55 were found to be the most likely to have either identified themselves as the main driver of their child’s car or considered doing so. 14 per cent of those surveyed within this age bracket had either fronted in the past or were currently doing so, with a further 21 per cent stating they had considered lying about being the main driver of a car belonging to their children.
The number of young people holding a driver’s learner permit or full driving licence has dropped significantly in the last 10 years, believed to be because the cost of insurance is pricing them out of the market.
Data from the Department of Transport shows the number of 17- to 20-year-olds applying for a learner’s permit has fallen over the past 10 years with just a small increase in applications between 2014-2016
In 2006, 90,413 young people aged 17-20 held a learner’s permit. In 2016, this number had dropped by more than a third to 57,821 permit holders a decade later. There were 40,899 first-time applications for a learner’s permit in 2006, while in 2016 there were 31,731 first-time applications.
Insurance companies have blamed the high awards by the District Court to personal injury claims, and say that insurance hikes aren’t beneficial to companies.
However, the Law Society of Ireland has said the courts aren’t to blame and said the ‘reckless pricing’ by companies in recent years led to hikes.
