More than 40% of parents deliberately lie when applying for car insurance, according to figures published by Co-op Insurance.

One of the most common lies, known as 'fronting' - is when a parent claims to the main driver of their child's car.

Once it was the cost of driving lessons that parents or youngsters had to save up for, but for young people today, the big hurdle now is the cost of insurance. Unless parents pay for the premiums, the dreams of car ownership are in danger of coming to a standstill.

Because of such difficulties, more and more parents are said to be turning to a practice called 'fronting'. By naming themselves as the main driver on a policy when in fact one of their children is the main driver, they can save a lot of money.

At the Motor Insurers' Bureau, they insist that the high cost of insurance should never justify lying on an application form. They warn that any attempt to do so could be costly.

In an interview with BBC news, one young driver called Tom commented "I think I'd be able to maybe buy a second hand or third hand car, but I don't think I'd be able to buy a new car and pay for the insurance." To insure a Vauxhall Corsa in his own name would cost no less than £4,000, that's with him named as the main driver and the car kept on a driveway.

Ashton West from the Motor Insurers' Bureau remarked: "Well yes, £4,000 is an awful lot of money, but I'm afraid it accurately reflects the risk posed by young drivers. If you're involved in an accident and you cause injury to a third party, then not only will you not get your own vehicle paid for by your insurer, but you'll probably have to pick up the cost of the third party claim as well. That could be hundreds of thousands of pounds and those consquences are likely to stick with you for the rest of your life."

Despite such warnings, many parents remain unaware that the practice of fronting is illegal. We found several who said they would be perfectly happy to do so.

But to be fair to parents, it seems some of them have actually been advised to put themselves on as the main driver by their insurance companies. However, the Association of British Insurers advise people to be as truthful as possible.

In the meantime, the survey from the Co-operative Insurance Company says hard times may be forcing parents to try and save money. But it warns that if they do so illegally, the eventual price could be prosecution.