Motorists 'donÂ’t tell insurers about accidents and convictions'
Published On 12 September 2007
Many motorists would keep their insurers in the dark about convictions and accidents if they thought it would mean their premiums stayed low.According to research carried out by confused.com, one in four drivers could be at risk of invalidating their car insurance by not keeping their provider up to date with changes to their circumstances.
For example, 68 per cent of people said they would not bother telling their insurer if they changed jobs and 60 per cent would neglect to mention if their annual mileage increased.
More seriously, 21 per cent would not inform the firm which provides their cover if they got penalty points on their licence and 20 per cent would keep quiet about motor-related convictions.
Most worryingly, ten per cent of drivers would not immediately inform their insurer about a major accident.
"Insurers take a dim view of people who don’t update them immediately should their circumstances change," explained Debra Williams, confused.com's managing director.
"Changes in job title or annual mileage may seem insignificant to most drivers, but this can significantly affect your premiums.
"In the worst case scenario you could land yourself in hot water with the police and get a record for fraud, making it difficult and considerably more expensive to get cover in the future."
The AA recently reported that the typical fully comprehensive car insurance policy now costs £822 a year.
