Chris Thompson   Chris Thompson on the internet

Increasingly, newspapers and online news publications are reporting that a growing number of parents are breaking the law in a bid to help their children get cheaper car insurance.

Apparently as much as 41% of parents deliberately lie when filling out policy applications.

Essentially, when they ring up or fill in forms for car insurance, they claim to be the main drivers on the policy, when in fact it is one of their children who is the main driver, or owner of the car. – a practice known as “fronting” – which usually offers large savings, but could also lead to prosecution.

According to numerous sources, Co-operative Insurance found that almost half of the nation’s parents were actually fronting policies, while 61% admitted that they would do so in the future.

The industry is warning that it is an extremely risky practice – indeed, there is a number of law society websites and these sorts of legal services that have to deal with this so called “fronting”, as well as a growing number of car insurance fraudsters.

Tim Franklin, of Co-operative Financial Services, said: “The view that motor insurance fronting is harmless and does not hurt anyone could not be further from the truth.”

He added: “Parents who believe they are helping their children to save money by fronting are not only risking prosecution, but harming their chances of obtaining insurance in the future.”

But the real scam, I think, is the insurance companies themselves.

They charge extortionate rates to these young kids passing their tests. How are they supposed to stump up thousands of pounds, when they are 17 years old, and have just shelled out all their money on a car?

Never mind growing accident claims for compensation or the plethora of claims for whiplash injury compensation – the real problem is the fact that these people charge way too much money. It’s no wonder parents are resorting to “fronting” to help save money.

The issue seems to be being tackled in precisely the wrong way. Cut down the costs, and there will be no fronting to worry about.

I didn’t realise that, on average, our young, new drivers had so little experience, so few lessons. When I came across this piece, I read with some interest. Apparently there has been a study undertaken to show that quite a few young drivers feel unprepared for being unleashed on the road. Many of them have only had up to 30 hours of practice, whilst it is recommended you should have 45 hours of training – in addition to 22 hours of private training.

Suddenly it’s not so surprising that car insurance companies provide such steep quotes for fresh-faced, recently passed drivers.

And yet, many people find it outrageous that companies can charge so much for insurance. It can, in a lot of cases, be huge amounts of money. Rarely, though, do we see it from their perspective. Car insurance companies are increasingly losing money on injury claims, with “bloodthirsty lawyers” always looking to squeeze out extra revenue. Not to mention the amount of claims which will be unjust, falsified, or completely fictitious.

We live in an age of cheap deals, where there are a number of websites that specialise in beating your last quote, and digging up the very best offer. People want their car insurance quotes to be delivered quickly, cheaply – and again the insurance companies will be under pressure to compete, to lower their prices. Again, the car insurance companies will be losing money.

There are plenty of websites that aim to give you plenty of compensation for accidents and injuries, too. Personal injury claims lawyers who offer no win no fee deals, but strive to win something, anything – even if you haven’t been hurt in the first place. You have your own personal injury calculators, too. It really is a different world these days, developed over the last twenty years or so.

A world where the legal profession is blended with our lives and our cars more than ever. But is it really for the best?