After decades of Britons stretching the truth when it comes to filing a claim or taking out a policy, insurance providers are now increasingly fighting back against even the smallest of fibs, it would seem.

According to a survey carried out last summer by the consumer group uSwitch, some 1.5 million drivers have lied about basic details such as their age and address in an effort to get cheaper car insurance at some point in the past.

More worryingly, over 750,000 drivers obtained an insurance policy despite failing to disclose details of past drink-driving indiscretions or speeding bans.

It seems unlikely that many of these people will be swayed by the argument put forward by some observers and all insurance companies that they are pushing premium prices up for everyone.

However, with ever-evolving anti-fraud techniques being rolled out across the board and insurers looking to offset some of the losses incurred from events such as the summer floods, it seems possible that some will be swayed by the prospect of prosecution, while others will ultimately pay a high price for their mendacious penny-pinching.

As Graeme Trudgill, technical and corporate affairs executive at the British Insurance Brokers' Association (BIBA) explains, it could be up to a court or the Financial Ombudsman Service to decide whether or not a policyholder has told a 'harmless white lie' or committed financial fraud.

"If it's found out that someone is being fraudulent –and they will be found out because you have to really look into these claims – then questions will be asked," he stated.

Notably, the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) has exposed and stopped frauds worth some £400 million since it was established in July 2006, showing how committed the industry is to clamping down on false claims of all sizes.

Perhaps the best illustration of the potential implications of insurance fraud is the recent case of 'the canoe man' John Darwin and his wife Ann, who could be facing the prospect of a lengthy custodial sentence should they be found guilty of trying to pull off the perfect scam.

Of course, not many people are audacious – or dim-witted – enough to try and fake their own deaths and run away to the sun on the life insurance payout, but then few would be happy to feel the full force of the law when it comes to driving while banned or paying a magistrate's fine after being found guilty of sneakily exaggerating the list of items taken from a break in.

"Unfortunately, there will always be people out there who do try and cheat the system but I think that we are becoming more aware, more alert, and we'll be more able to respond to it and the canoeists of this world going forth," Mr Trudgeill concluded.