Electric Car Chat

Named Driver Fronting Is Fraud And Carries Devastating Penalties

• Graham Hill • Season 2 • Episode 10

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A “cheap” workaround that so many families whisper about can end with a crushed car, an empty wallet, and a criminal record. We’re talking about car insurance fronting—when a parent insures a vehicle in their own name while a young driver is the true main user—and why this common shortcut is outright fraud with consequences that hit hard when a claim lands.

We unpack how insurers actually price risk, why young drivers cost more, and the EV twist that catches many out: instant torque and complex tech push premiums higher and raise claim costs. You’ll hear the uncomfortable truth about what happens when fronting is discovered—backdated cancellations, uninsured driving penalties, court appearances, and a fraud marker that shadows both parent and child for years. We also explain how fronting gets detected, from address patterns and commuting habits to telematics data and shared fraud databases that don’t forget.

Most importantly, we share a clear, legal playbook to cut costs without gambling your future. Choose cars in lower insurance groups with modest bhp and fewer distractions. Understand how evolving safety standards—like Euro NCAP’s push for physical controls—can influence risk. Use telematics to let safe driving earn real discounts, add a parent as a named driver only when it’s genuine, pay annually to avoid interest, quote early to beat price spikes, adjust voluntary excess sensibly, and start building that no claims discount now rather than later. If the first quotes feel impossible, consider driving less, delaying ownership, or mixing in public transport while experience grows.

If you’ve felt pressure to “do what everyone does,” this conversation gives you the facts, the stakes, and the safer path forward. Subscribe for more straight‑talk guidance on electric cars, insurance, and road safety, share this episode with parents who need it, and leave a review to help others find the show. Your support helps more families avoid costly mistakes.

To buy a copy of Electric Cars - The Truth Revealed visit grahamhilltraining.com. If you are interested in sponsoring this podcast or would be interested in working together please visit grahamhilltraining.com/contact


Hi, I'm Graham Hill, and welcome back to my podcast Electric Car Chat and I’m still making a ruckus. First of all many thanks for the kind words from those who have found my podcasts of use. If you have any thoughts or questions please drop me a note to graham@grahamhilltraining.com

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Today I want to talk about something that affects thousands of families across the UK - something that many parents do with the best intentions, not realising they're actually breaking the law. I'm talking about something called car insurance fronting.

If you've got say a son or daughter, who's just passed their driving test, or if you're thinking about helping them get mobile but the insurance on their car of choice, especially if it’s electric, with generally higher premiums, you absolutely need to listen to this. Because what seems like a harmless way to save money and get them on the road could land both you and your child with a criminal record.

What Is Fronting? 

So what exactly is fronting? It's when a parent - or anyone with a clean licence and good driving history - takes out a car insurance policy in their own name, listing their son or daughter, or anyone else for that matter, as a named driver, even though the young person is actually the main user of the car, whether they own it or not.

Here's a typical scenario: Your 18-year-old has just passed their test. You get a quote for insurance in their name and nearly fall off your chair - it's £2,500, maybe even £3,000 a year. Then someone suggests, "Why don't you just put it in your name? Add them as a named driver. It'll be loads cheaper."

And they're right - it will be cheaper. Your quote might come back at £800 instead of £2,500. That's a saving of £1,700! No wonder it's tempting. And it’s something that me and all my mates did when we were in our teens with either our mums or dads. To be fair that was a very long time ago and I don’t think it was considered to be illegal at the time.

But here's the crucial bit that many parents don't realise: this is insurance fraud. It's illegal. And the consequences can be absolutely devastating for both you and your youngster.

The Scale of the Problem 

And this isn't just affecting a handful of families. Recent research by Aviva found that one in six young drivers - that's 17% - admit to being on a fronted policy. Go.Compare's research found that 11% of parents have already fronted a policy for their child, and a staggering 69% of parents said they either have done it or would consider doing it to save money.

That's over two-thirds of parents! And the worrying part is that many of them genuinely don't understand they're committing fraud. In fact, over a third of young drivers, that’s 35%, think that lying on their car insurance application is a "victimless crime."

It's not. And I'm going to explain exactly why.

Why Is It Illegal? 

Insurance premiums are based on risk. When an insurer calculates your premium, they need to know who's actually driving the car most of the time. They look at the main driver's age, their claims history, where the car is parked overnight, what time of day it's typically driven - all sorts of factors are considered.

Young drivers pay more because, statistically, they're higher risk. According to government figures, younger drivers are more likely to be involved in collisions involving loss of control, exceeding speed limits, and careless driving. The insurance companies aren't being mean - they're looking at cold, hard accident statistics.

When you put the policy in your name but your child is the main driver, you're deliberately misrepresenting the risk to the insurance company. You're essentially lying to get a cheaper premium. And that's fraud, pure and simple.

The insurance policy is based on false information, which means it's not valid. If your child has an accident, the insurer could refuse to pay out. Imagine your 18-year-old has a serious accident, and there are injuries to other people. The insurer refuses to pay because of fronting. You could be personally liable for hundreds of thousands of pounds in damages.

The Penalties Are Serious 

Let's talk about what can actually happen if you're caught fronting, because the consequences are far more serious than most parents realise.

First, the insurance company can cancel the policy immediately. Not just refuse a claim - cancel the entire policy, backdated to when it started. This means your child has been driving uninsured. And driving without insurance carries the same penalties as any other uninsured driver.

The police can seize the car. They can actually crush it. Your child could face a driving ban - and only just having got their licence! They could receive penalty points on their licence before they've even had a chance to build up any no-claims discount.

Both you and your child could face unlimited fines. You could both end up in court. And this is the really serious bit - you could both end up with a criminal record for insurance fraud.

Think about what that means. A criminal record affects job prospects, particularly in fields like finance, law, healthcare, or any job requiring security clearance. It can affect mortgage applications. It can even affect travel to certain countries.

And here's something that surprises many people - only 51% of young drivers realise they could face a driving ban for driving without proper insurance. Just 45% understand their car could be seized by the police.

Once you've had a policy cancelled for fronting, good luck getting affordable insurance in the future. Both parent and child will have to declare the cancelled policy every time they apply for insurance. Premiums will be sky-high, if you can get cover at all. Some insurers won't touch you.

How Insurers Detect Fronting 

Now, you might be thinking, "How would they even know?" Well, insurance companies aren't stupid. They've seen every trick in the book, and they've got sophisticated ways of spotting fronting.

If there's a claim, they'll investigate. If it's always your son or daughter who's driving when there's an incident, red flags start waving.

They look at patterns. If the car is always parked at your child's university address overnight, but you're listed as the main driver, that doesn't add up.

Many insurers now use telematics data - black boxes that record when, where, and how the car is being driven. This data tells them who's really doing most of the driving.

They can see if the person named as the main driver rarely uses the car. If you're supposedly the main driver but you already have your own car that you drive to work every day, they'll ask questions.

And remember - insurance companies share information about fraud through databases. If you're caught, it follows you.

Electric Cars Make It Worse 

Here's something particularly relevant with electric cars becoming more popular - they can be especially expensive for young drivers to insure. Electric cars typically have high torque, which means rapid acceleration. From an insurance perspective, that makes them higher risk for inexperienced drivers.

So if your child wants an electric car - maybe they're environmentally conscious, maybe you're thinking about long-term running costs - the temptation to front becomes even stronger because the insurance quotes will be even higher.

But the same rules apply. Actually, they're probably watching even more carefully with expensive EVs because it’s now been found that the cost of claims is higher.

Legal Ways to Reduce Young Driver Insurance 

Right, so we've established that fronting is illegal and the consequences are serious for both of you. But I'm not leaving you without a few ideas on how to legitimately reduce their insurance costs. There are legal ways to help reduce your child's insurance costs.

First, the choice of car is absolutely crucial. Don't let your teenager choose a car based on how cool it looks or how fast it goes. Insurance groups range from 1 to 50 - you want something in the lowest groups possible. When choosing a petrol or diesel car you would look for cars with small engines, not modified and not a performance model. 

You should use the same approach when choosing an electric car. Look for cars with a low insurance group. Instead of engine size consider the brake horse power. That will determine the torque or acceleration which was found by the insurance company, AXA, to be a major contributor to accidents as a result of something I mentioned in a previous podcast called ‘Overtapping’. And check the top speed of the car. 

As more insurance companies follow the lead of AXA and rely more on experimentation than data, we’re seeing things like in-car distractions being factored in when calculating premiums. Unfortunately, many younger drivers see the technology as the main reason for getting into an electric car but with high levels of distraction some insurance companies load the premium. Made worse by the car manufacturers continually looking at ways to include more tech even in the more basic electric cars.

If you’re a car dealer you should be well armed with insurance information, especially if you have cars available that would suit young drivers with lower end tech, lower brake horse power and a top speed of under 100 miles per hour. This doesn’t mean depriving drivers of functions but making them less complicated to operate. 

Safety assessors EuroNCAP will be marking down cars that rely wholly on touch screen controls in 2026.  So, as of next year, EuroNCAP will implement new testing protocols that require vehicles to have physical controls for essential safety features, such as the horn, turn signals, hazard lights, wipers, and SOS function, in order to earn a five-star safety rating. This change aims to reduce driver distraction by discouraging the use of touchscreens for these vital functions, encouraging manufacturers to prioritise intuitive, physical controls for a safer driving experience. 

In-Vehicle distractions and mobile phones are the primary cause of accidents in the UK. According to the Dept. of Transport data 3,600 accidents in 2023 had driver distraction as a contributing factor. The insurers are aware of this and will load premiums for the higher tech cars accordingly.

Second, consider telematics insurance - that's black box insurance to you and me. This is specifically designed for young drivers. A small device monitors how, when, and where they drive. Drive safely and sensibly, and the premiums come down at renewal. Some insurers report savings of up to 60% for safe drivers. Yes, there's an element of monitoring involved, but if your child is a safe driver, they've got nothing to worry about. And the data can actually help in disputes if there's an accident.

Companies like Admiral's LittleBox, RAC Black Box through Ticker, Sterling Insurance, Adrian Flux's FluxScore - they all offer this facility. Young drivers aged 17-24 pay an average of £1,435 for insurance, but with black box insurance and safe driving, that can come down dramatically.

Third, you CAN legitimately add yourself as a named driver - but only if you're genuinely going to drive the car occasionally. The key word is occasional. If you're both going to share the driving roughly equally, discuss it with the insurer. They can usually accommodate this - they just need to know the true situation.

It’s not unusual for one of the parents to have a company car then buy a car for family use with all drivers in the family named drivers. But the same rule applies, the main driver is the driver in whose name the insurance is in. 

Fourth, encourage them to pay annually rather than monthly if possible. Monthly payments usually include interest, making the total cost higher.

Fifth, shop around. Use comparison sites, but also check with specialist young driver insurers directly. Get quotes at least 26 days before they need the insurance - leaving it to the last minute can cost up to 40% more.

Sixth, consider increasing the voluntary excess. This lowers the premium, though obviously they'll pay more if they make a claim.

Seventh, help them build their no-claims discount. Every year without a claim reduces future premiums. This is why having the policy in their own name from the start, despite the higher cost, is actually the smart long-term move.

The Bottom Line 

Look, I completely understand the temptation to front. Insurance for young drivers is ridiculously expensive - often more than the value of the car they're driving. As parents, we want to help our kids. We want to make things affordable for them. We don't want them to be priced off the road.

But fronting isn't the answer. The short-term saving isn't worth the long-term risk. A criminal record, a crushed car, being personally liable for accident damages, future insurance being impossible to get or afford - these are real consequences that happen to real families every single day.

Have an honest conversation with your child about insurance costs. Help them choose a sensible first car. Look at black box insurance together. Budget for the real cost. Maybe they need to wait a bit longer and save up more. Maybe they need to drive less in the first year. Maybe they take public transport for a while longer.

Whatever you do, do it legally. Because no amount of money saved is worth a criminal record for you or your child.

Closing 

If you found this useful, please share it with other parents. This is information that families desperately need.

Remember - if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. And if someone suggests putting the insurance in your name to save money, you now know exactly why that's a terrible idea.

I'm Graham Hill, and you can find more information at grahamhilltraining.com. Drive safely, insure honestly, and I'll catch you on the next one and in the meantime I’ll continue to make a ruckus. By for now.