Ready, set, go-kart! You fell in love with it when you were a child. As a teen, you loved it even more. And as an adult…you still haven’t stopped loving it. Go-karting presents the opportunity to drive the way you can’t in a real car on real roads. Sometimes it feels like a miniature Formula One race. Go-karting can definitely get your adrenaline pumping.

But just because you’re racing under controlled conditions doesn’t mean there is no risk of danger whatsoever. Go-karting accidents still have consequences and can result in serious injuries. That’s why, if you’re going go-karting on vacation, you should make sure to purchase travel insurance for go-karting.

Activity

Did you know that Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton got his start as a professional go-kart racer? His love for the sport and his natural talent for racing helped propel him onto the world stage. Go-karting is a well-known activity among racing enthusiasts and children’s-birthday-party attendees alike. On a recreational level, people pay to go-kart by the hour or the number of laps. These karts designed for family entertainment reach speeds of up to 40–50 miles per hour (about 65–80 kilometers per hour). Electric go-karts used in recreational go-karting reach speeds of about 50 mph.

Go-karting is also done on a championship level. Depending on the size of the engine in cubic centimeters (cc), these karts can go anywhere from 75 miles per hour (120 kilometers per hour / 200 cc) to more than 180 mph (290 kilometers per hour / 1,000 cc).

The thing that makes go-kart racing fun is precision driving. Since these karts don’t have suspensions, they are more intuitive, which allows for quick response times. This means that during a race, turning requires precision, just like in Formula One. If you take a wide turn in the outside lane, you will have a lot of ground to make up.

Precision racing can understandably put pressure on drivers to perform at high levels of concentration. This pressure and general atmosphere of competitiveness can overtake one’s sense of caution—and lead to potentially serious mistakes.

Risks

The major injury concerns surrounding go-karts are bone fractures, head trauma, burns and road rash, and whiplash. Due to the intuitiveness of go-karting, hitting a turn hard can result in a spin-out. The faster you’re going, the more dangerous the spin: Not only will you have lost control of the kart, but you can also hit the safety barrier or another kart. And the harder you hit, the better the chance of injury.

Injuries can also happen when two karts collide with each other on the track. These collisions can lead to neck strains, whiplash, or even fractures. These injuries can happen to almost anyone, regardless of their level of experience. You could easily get injured because of another driver’s mistake. This relative lack of control is why purchasing adequate go-karting travel insurance is so important.

This type of insurance will help cover the costs of any medical treatment you might require. Peace of mind and financial security are worth a few extra dollars, and it leaves you free to invest your time and mental effort in recovery.

Travel Insurance

Getting a travel insurance plan for go-karting is important. Most standard travel insurance policies don’t offer coverage for extreme sports like go-karting. Before you leave on vacation, read your plan’s fine print to determine whether or not you’re covered. If not, then you will need to get a go-karting travel insurance plan so the only thing you have to worry about is crossing the finish line.

DISCLAIMER: The information within this article is intended as a broad summary of benefits and services and is meant for informational purposes only. The information does not describe all scenarios, coverages or exclusions of any insurance plan. The benefits and services of an insurance plan are subject to change. This is not your policy/certificate of insurance. If there is any discrepancy between the information in this article and the language of your policy/certificate wording, the language of the policy/certificate wording will prevail.