Probably not, and what goes unprotected is your own car. The Texas Department of Insurance’s consumer guide lists accidents that happen while “racing” among the things most auto policies do not cover. Hagerty, which sells single-event track insurance, says the same about driver education days in particular: “Most standard auto insurance policies do not cover HPDE events.” HPDE is high performance driver education, the instructed track day most people start with.
What your own policy probably says
Hagerty’s FAQ describes the wording to look for. Auto insurers “have started adding specific language excluding ‘track,’ ‘high performance,’ ‘HPDE-type,’ ‘racing or speed contest events,’ or while on a ‘racing surface.’” It also explains why a driver can believe the opposite: “In the past decade, most auto insurance companies have added exclusions to their policies eliminating coverage of vehicles for HPDE events.” What an agent said when the policy was new is not the answer. The exclusions section of the policy you hold today is.
Ask in writing before you book
Send your insurer or agent one question by email: “Does my policy cover physical damage to my car, and my liability, while I take part in a high performance driver education (HPDE) event or track day at a racetrack?” Keep the reply. If it quotes an exclusion, that is the answer. If it says yes, ask which part of the policy says so.
What a track day policy covers
Single-event HPDE insurance is physical damage cover for your car while it is at the event. Hagerty’s, underwritten by RLI, protects the car “while on the track or in the paddock.” Lockton Motorsports describes its policy as covering the car “from the time you enter the grounds of a track to the time you leave.”
Both cover more than one driver. Hagerty includes your instructor automatically and an additional driver listed on the application. Lockton lists “two drivers at each event at no additional charge” and “any demonstration laps your instructor drives,” and it also covers modifications you have made and track cars that are not street licensed.
What it does not cover
Liability. Hagerty’s page says it plainly: “Liability insurance coverage is not included.” The policy pays for damage to your car, not for damage you do to someone else’s car or to the track.
Racing. Hagerty’s policy “is designed to cover you during high performance driver’s education events, not competitive, wheel-to-wheel racing events.” Time trials are an option you choose on the quote.
Some cars. At Hagerty, “all Ferrari, Lamborghini and McLaren makes are currently ineligible for HPDE coverage.”
The deductible is not the one you are used to
A street policy usually carries a flat deductible. Hagerty’s track policy offers two percentage options: “10% with a $2,000 minimum and $12,000 maximum” or “15% with a $3,000 minimum and $18,000 maximum.” Read the minimums first: on either option, the first $2,000 or $3,000 of any claim is yours, so a bent wheel and fender may cost you the whole repair.
Do you need it to get on track?
Lockton says “most events require participants to have single-day insurance for HPDE.” That is the seller’s statement, and the rule that applies to you is the one in your event’s own terms, so read them. The SCCA’s Track Night in America points its drivers to Hagerty’s single-event coverage on its own track insurance page. Price the policy before you pay the entry fee, because it can change whether the day makes sense.
Every day is a new policy
Hagerty’s HPDE cover is sold “only on a per event basis,” and the company also offers “an annual non-competitive track policy.” If you go more than a few times a year, ask for both prices. Street insurance is its own decision, covered in Insurance is the second payment.
How collector car policies value a car, and the usage rules they set, are in Agreed value car insurance.
None of this is legal or insurance advice. Coverage differs by insurer, by policy and by state, and the wording quoted here was read on 7 November 2026.
- Source: Texas Department of Insurance, Auto insurance guide (what most policies do not cover), read 7 November 2026
- Source: Hagerty, HPDE and Track Day Insurance, read 7 November 2026
- Source: Hagerty, Track day insurance FAQs (exclusions, deductibles, eligible cars), read 7 November 2026
- Source: Lockton Motorsports, HPDE Insurance, read 7 November 2026
- Source: SCCA, Track Night in America, Track Insurance, read 7 November 2026
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