In the Driver’s Seat

For more than a half-century, Americans have spent their weekends in front of television eagerly watching sports programming traditionally dominated by professional football, baseball, basketball and hockey. But over the last couple of decades, auto racing has become one of the largest markets in the U.S. sports and entertainment industry, stealing a healthy percentage of the spectator spotlight on Saturdays and Sundays.

From the first European road races of the early twentieth century to the dirt track stock car events of American bootleggers, auto racing has evolved and diversified more than any other national or international sport. Racing attracts fans from different walks of life, from the very rich to the very common man, and each type of racing generally captivates specific fan bases all of whom are willing to shell out billions of dollars per year to watch men and women push cars, trucks and motorcycles to their technological limits; in turn, those men and women risk life and limb for speed, glory and cash.

Races vary from the quarter-mile drag strip to thousand mile rally races in vehicles ranging from pick-up trucks to dune buggies to state-of-the-art racecars. And the insurance risks associated with such racing vary as equally.

The drivers themselves have gained superstar status in the same realm as the world’s top athletes, finding their way into popular culture including television commercials and cinema. Their celebrity on and off the track score these professionals huge earnings and endorsement deals that require the finest of income protection and wealth preservation.

Life insurance and accidental death coverage for motorsports participants are obviously important financial safeguards. Drivers put their lives at risk every time they get behind the wheel. Although safety equipment standards and operation methods have vastly improved in this century, speeds have increased and the dangers to the participating drivers have unfortunately continued to evolve in most racing circuits. Lives are lost every year. That is the nature of this beast.

Petersen International is the industry expert in financially indemnifying such immense risk. We offer high-limit personal and key person insurances on the lives of professional and amateur racers from NASCAR to Indy to motocross to drag racing.

But even more essential, especially to professional drivers, is disability insurance. The chances of a healthy adult being seriously injured in a crash at high speed are far greater than his or her chances of dying in that crash. Modern safety devices have made a huge impact on the sport, but injuries are inevitable. Short and long-term disabilities have become commonplace in the motorsports world, leaving drivers, their teams, their employers and their sponsors in economic turmoil.

Petersen International is the proud creator of RacerCover, a unique disability insurance platform designed specifically for the motorsports industry. The product is extremely flexible, complimenting the typical lifestyles of the clients. Drivers can be covered on and off the track with large benefit limits provided in weekly, monthly and/or lump sum payouts. The elimination/deductible periods are qualified by either a number of races missed or by a number of days of disablement at the choice of the insured person. This program is a necessity for all top-rated drivers and their racing teams.

Learn more about these Petersen products at www.piu.org or contact our Motorsports Team at (800)345-8816.