Huh? What? People Actually Lie when Purchasing Auto Insurance?

Answering the headline. Yes. Most people working in insurance know this all too well. None of this will be a surprise. The website, Finder.com did a study of insurance applications and found that 35.8 million drivers — stretching across a bunch of demographics — lied to insurers about their driving records.

The point? Lower rates.

Finder.com says that’s up quite a bit from their 2020 survey. It only had 11.8 million telling whoppers. So, the jump between 2020 and 2022 is 204.8%. Finder.com did not give a reason for the increase.

Maybe it’s COVID. The pandemic gets blamed for everything else, so why not this, too?

A huge percentage of those lying do so because they have awful driving records and are a high risk. Participants in the survey say doing the Pinocchio thing is worth it since the average saving is $362 a month, or $4,342 a year.

*** Men lie more than women

*** It’s 19.8% to 8.9% — or 23.9 million compared to 11.9 million

Of the generations, millennials are the most likely to lie:

*** Gen Z — 17.9%

*** Millennials — 22.5%

*** Gen X — 18.1%

*** Baby boomers — 4%

*** The silent generation — 3.4%

One of the reasons younger drivers lie is because they typically pay more for insurance than older people. When it comes to Gen Z, the lower number for them is likely impacted by the fact that a huge percentage do not yet drive.

Finder also estimates how much each generation will save if they lie to an insurer and get away with it:

*** Gen Z — $113

*** Millennials — $100

*** Gen X — $104

*** Baby Boomers — $50

*** Silent Generation — $37

At 16.3%, people in the West are the most likely to lie. The Midwest — 11.1% — are the least likely.

Here are some of the best whoppers:

1. Accident record — Over 30% admit to lying about their accident record and underreporting auto crashes to save money on their premiums.

2. Who’s driving — 26.3% lie about just who will be driving their vehicles.

3. Tickets — 25.5 % lie about the number of tickets they’ve received.

4. Primary driver — 18.1% don’t quite tell the truth about the vehicle’s primary driver

5. Vehicle use — 26% lie about exactly what they’re going to use their vehicle for. They don’t admit to driving for Uber or doing food delivery.

6. Where do you live — 30% don’t tell the truth about where they live so they can get a better rate.

Source link: PropertyCasualty360.com — https://bit.ly/3MoCVTI