27 replies to this topic

[johnS]

Can it be done? well obviously it can because I have. Two different insurance companies to one car. Nothing dodgy going on here, i'ts just cheaper adding someone elses car to my existing policy as a named driver.

Nothing bad will happen will it?

[nigwith]

Sorry, I don't quite follow.
Are you saying that you have a car which you have insured for you to drive, then there is a second policy with another Insurance company to insure someone else to drive the same car?

[johnS]

Sorry, I don't quite follow.
Are you saying that you have a car which you have insured for you to drive, then there is a second policy with another Insurance company to insure someone else to drive the same car?

i have a policy with two cars on it, main driver on one, named driver on the other. There is another car that i am named on, and another person is the main driver. They are also a main driver with another insurance company

[Mike77]

If both cars are in your name on the v5 then you must be the main driver on both,,, you could end up with 6 points on your licence if this isn't the case !!!

[johnS]

If both cars are in your name on the v5 then you must be the main driver on both,,, you could end up with 6 points on your licence if this isn't the case !!!

my focus is on the V5, the other car isnt

[gumpy321]

i have a policy with two cars on it, main driver on one, named driver on the other. There is another car that i am named on, and another person is the main driver. They are also a main driver with another insurance company

That doesn't make sense.

To my understanding you can't have one insurance policy with two cars on it unless it's some kind of multicar policy, or a trade policy.

Can you clearly write again what you mean?

[TDCiST]

I'm confused... from you original post you appear to be saying that you have one car, but with two insurance policies... which as far as i know is illegal, as you could claim form two companies for same accident...

then in a later post you say you have one policy with two cars on it... like a multicar policy...

[Mike77]

I thought it was a bit confusing.

[Preee]

I have my car with wife on policy , my wife has her car with me on her policy.different companies. Is that what your trying to say?

[nigwith]

I'm sorry but I still can't work out what the situation is here.

Perhaps if you could be more specific but without naming names (quoting Insurer A and B and driver X and Y), we could make some meaningful comments . As a general principle though you may not, as previously stated, insure the same 'risk' twice..

[Stoney871]

Indeed, you can be insured on your own car but should not even be a named driver on another as fully comp would cover you third party on any other car anyway.
If I came across this at the roadside I would certainly be making further enquiries.

[Mike77]

@Stoney, a lot of companies won't provide cover for other cars now when you have fully comp insurance. My mate got stung for that, always been legit, always has third party cover through his own fully comp policy,, got pulled driving his girlfriends car just after renewing both policies only to find out they had not included it for some reason or another. A swift court hearing and 6 points. His fault for not checking they said.

[artscot79]

i know what he means insurance companies accept it but if you have an accident come pay out time you may find they either dont pay out or investigate you or both its called fronting and is actually illegal i believe though the insurance companies accept it till something happens the car you are a named driver on must be on that owners insurance


A fraud called "fronting" occurs when a young person has a car in their own name, but the insurer is falsely told that a parent is the main driver.
Premiums are cut by hundreds of pounds but claims are rejected as the driver is told they are not properly insured.
The young drivers can also find themselves in court.
Some insurance firms are being criticised for not doing more to stop the fraud during online application processes.

Why do people 'front'?

Insurance can often cost a young driver who owns a car more than a thousand pounds a year, because they have not built up any no-claims bonus and they are seen as a far greater risk than older drivers.
But if a parent is put down as the main driver on the insurance policy, it can significantly lower the price.
Daniel, a student at a university in South West London, told Radio 4's Money Box how his mother "fronted" for him when he passed his test at the age of 17.
"It was quite expensive to be the main driver and to actually be insured as the first driver.
"I had to get my mum to put me on her insurance in order to make it more affordable.




Any act of deception to try to get a lower insurance premium... is tantamount to fraud

Adrian Webb, esure



"It saved about £500.
"Everything was registered in her name but the car did actually belong to me."
If an insurance company believes "fronting" has taken place, it can refuse to pay any claim.
The young driver can then be treated as driving without insurance and face a fine with six points penalty points on their licence.
Adrian Webb from the insurers esure, says parents and their children should resist the temptation to "front".
"The truth is, any act of deception to try to get a lower insurance premium with your insurance company is tantamount to fraud."
The insurers' remit

But critics question whether the insurers themselves are doing enough to discourage fronting or giving adequate warnings to people that they might be committing insurance fraud.



I believe it is the insurers' fault

Paul, Norwich


Do you agree or disagree? Have your say
During the online application process some, some firms - including esure, Churchill and the Post Office - allow a car owned by a young person to be insured by a parent who then puts their child down as an occasional driver.
Other companies insist that the owner of the car and the main driver must be the same on the insurance application, so there is less risk of "fronting".
The insurance industry itself will not reveal any figures on how many claims it is turning down, but the Financial Ombudsman Service says it is dealing with between 100 and 200 fronting disputes each year, and that indicates that firms will be dealing with around 1000 such cases annually.
Be warned

Peter Hinchcliffe, the lead insurance ombudsman, says in many cases customers have a difficult task to show they have not been "fronting".
"This is a question of the evidence, so if you are the parent and you have said you are the main driver and the car has been in an accident, or stolen, at your son or daughter's university, you have got a lot of work to do to explain how that has come about."

[ferretfloozy]

im fully comp on my focus and my fiesta ..both have different policies with different insurance companies.. im also named driver on my daughters polo even though i have 2 policies in my own name for 2 other cars ..reason being .. my daughters fully comp and if i wasnt named as a driver and had a misshap she would.nt be to pleased if i was 3rd party.. it was my understanding thats its illegal to insure the same car twice ..but you can have as many named drivers on a policy as you are willing to pay for ..and you cannot drive a second vehicle that you own 3rd party on 1 insurance ..they both must be insured to drive independantly.( try taxing it with the someone else's insurance ).also you can only drive another vehicle 3rd party if its the same insurance category as your own policy AND its insured by the vehicle owner..thats just my interpretation ( a copper with a big dog could always persuade me otherwise )

[MartynS]

Indeed, you can be insured on your own car but should not even be a named driver on another as fully comp would cover you third party on any other car anyway.
If I came across this at the roadside I would certainly be making further enquiries.

So are you saying that someone who has their own car and own insurance is not allowed to be a named driver on another policy full stop? Surely that can't be right? As ferretfloozy says this would mean any other car you drive would only be covered 3rd party and there would be no way of getting fully comp...