Half of Brits are telling porkies in job applications

More than half of Brits are lying on their CVs - and some of us are telling some whoppers.

A survey has revealed that 55% of UK employees have fibbed or withheld important information when filling out a job application or sending a CV.

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A quarter have named a friend - rather than a boss - as a referee, for fear of what might be revealed about them in their previous post.

Women, it seems, are more likely to bend the truth on applications, although more men embellish their current salary.

"While we know that some people embellish their previous experience on a CV, it's shocking to see just how many people lie, and to what degree," says Catherine Bannan, HR manager at Printerland.co.uk, which carried out the research.

As for the reasons for lying, nearly a quarter say they are after a higher salary.

But it's a tactic that often backfires, with nearly a third of liars getting caught out after bagging the job. Of these, just under half were made to take additional training, one in three was forced to take a pay cut - and one in three was fired.

And interviewers are onto the liars, with 61% of those in charge of hiring or recruitment saying they'd previously suspected a candidate of exaggerating on an application. In such cases, three quarters grill the candidate for more information, while 7% simply bin the application.

Some recruiters report meeting candidates who claim they've been self-employed - when background checks reveal they were actually behind bars.

One applicant described the major responsibility of running a nursery at a school - only for the interviewer to catch on that the nursery didn't exist at all.

"It's understandable that a candidate might do all they can to land their dream job, however, as our survey shows, there is a real chance you could get caught out, which can lead to a dismissal," says Bannan.

"It's always best to be honest on job applications, and if you feel you aren't good enough for a position, you could try asking the company for training tips to improve your offering."