What is insurance fronting?
Fronting occurs when an older person, usually a parent, takes out an insurance policy in their own name and then adds a young driver as an occasional user. However, instead of the older person being the main user of the vehicle as agreed with the insurer, the young driver is actually the main user.
Consequences of Fronting
Fronting is an act of fraud. If the insurance company believes fronting has taken place, the policy can be cancelled, and a claim could be voided. The insurance company can recover third-party costs from the policyholder, potentially leaving a parent thousands of pounds out of pocket.
For the young driver, being treated as uninsured by policy can result in a fine and 6 penalty points- enough to disqualify a restricted driver from driving. The young person will need to retake their driving test at the end of the disqualification period.
Both the young driver and parent will face higher costs in the future.
Fronting is Easy to Spot!
Insurance companies are not stupid; they will check to see if the older person is the main driver of any other car. If there are as many cars as driver in the household, fronting will be obvious.
If the car is registered to the young driver, or if a collision involves the young driver on their way to or from school or work, insurers will suspect fronting.
If you are worried about insuring yourself correctly, we recommend that you speak to your insurance broker.
