What happens if your track day ends with a wrecked car? It depends a lot on what kind of insurance you have. Insurance from Lockton Motorsports exists to protect you from just such a risk.
Here are two examples of track day claims that illustrate what can happen when you’re out on the track and how we handle these kinds of claims for our customers.
Claim Example: A Chevy Camaro Spins
It’s a sunny morning in June at a popular regional track. You’re on your second solo lap of the day, just starting to push your Camaro’s V-8. A fun corner sequence is coming up, with a faster corner and then a slower one. The first one goes alright, but when you get to the second, there’s too much speed and things start to go wrong.
You miss the apex and two wheels end up in the grass. Before you know it, you’ve spun around. Even though this part of the track has wide spacing, your back passenger corner clips a barrier just before you come to a stop on the grass. Luckily, there are no other cars nearby. The corner workers see you and send over help.
When you get back to the paddock, you’re worried. The Camaro’s bumper and quarter panel are scraped and the taillight is damaged, but you can’t see much other obvious damage. You hope it isn’t that bad. And luckily, you do have track day insurance with us.
When you get home later that day, you read over the insurance documents that were sent to your email when you signed up online. The process sounds straightforward enough. You visit the Lockton Motorsports Claims Forms webpage and are able to submit your information right away using the online form.
The secure web form asks for basic information, including your personal information, insurance policy number, event information and an incident description. A confirmation message tells your claim has been submitted and that you will receive a call from your insurance representative soon.
On Monday, you get a call about your Camaro. A friendly insurance representative goes over your information to make sure everything is correct and complete, and schedules a claim adjuster to come out to view the damage to the car.
Luckily, you find out the damage to your Camaro is mostly just cosmetic. Still, this fender-bender isn’t cheap. Your car cost just under $45,000 new and the repairs are expected to total about $8,000. You hear back from the insurance rep that your claim is approved, so you can schedule repairs. You receive a check for the agreed amount minus your deductible, and before you know it, your Camaro is as good as new.
Claim Example: A Subaru BRZ Gets Wrecked
It’s a hot afternoon in August as you make your way around one of your favorite technical tracks. The day has been going great so far. It’s your second session of the day and your Subaru BRZ is keeping a good pace through the first lap. After picking up speed on a long straight, you prepare for one of the track’s faster corners.
As you approach the corner and identify your brake marker, you notice the shiny reflection of fluid on track — right where you are headed and need to brake. It becomes obvious the BRZ isn’t slowing as quickly as normal. The tires struggle for traction and you quickly lose control. The car pitches sideways and hits the tire barrier at a high rate of speed.
You take stock of what happened. Luckily, you’re alright and no one else was caught up in the wreck. The BRZ is still in one piece, but you know it took a tough hit from that barrier. Help arrives to get you and the car back to the paddock. The BRZ isn’t drivable, so you have it towed to a recommended local shop and get ready to file your claim.
The claim process for the BRZ starts out much like the one for the Camaro above. You submit your claim online and wait to receive a call from an insurance representative. Then, an adjuster goes out to inspect the damage and make a recommendation.
In this case, the damage is substantial. Your Subaru not only has a smashed-up bumper and wing panel, it also has suspension, engine component and frame damage. You find out that it’s going to be a total loss. It’s tough news to hear, but your HPDE Insurance does cover these sorts of losses as well as just the minor scuffs and scrapes.
The cost of your BRZ new was about $24,000, but in the years since, you’ve done a fair amount of upgrades. Because HPDE Insurance uses an agreed value basis for coverage, you were able to specify at the time of purchasing your policy that you believed the current value of the car was about $28,000. An adjuster largely agrees, and they just ask for some documentation detailing the cost of modifications made to the car.
Because the vehicle is a total loss, there are a few more steps to finish this claim. You get instructions on some forms you will need to sign and where to send your title. Insurance takes care of the rest. You’re guided through the necessary steps and receive a check for the agreed amount, minus the deductible. While it’s a disappointment to lose the BRZ, you are grateful to recoup a lot of your investment.
Track Day Insurance Is Crucial
Whether you have a minor fender-bender or a major wreck, the cost to repair or replace your track vehicle can be high. Especially with prices going up, it’s important to make sure you have insurance.
While your daily driver may already have personal auto coverage from a major carrier, it may not apply on the track. Most insurers exclude track day events in their policy language.
Unlike other insurers, Lockton Motorsports offers insurance specifically designed to protect your car while you’re participating in HPDE, track day and time trial events. Our policy covers:
- Street-legal cars and non-licensed track cars
- Modifications you’ve made to your car
- Two drivers at each event at no additional cost
- Any demonstration laps your instructor drives
Along with HPDE Insurance, we also offer Off-Track Insurance to protect your non-licensed car when it’s not on the track, AutoCross with Off-Track Insurance for autocross enthusiasts, and more.
Get coverage fast at LocktonMotorsports.com or call (866) 582-4957 to speak to our motorsports insurance experts.