The benefits staff has compiled the following Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and answers to give U-Haul Authorized Dealers and their employees ready access to the basic facts on the Dealer Benefits Program. If you have a question that is not listed here, please call the benefits center at (888) 551-9801, or email us at contactus@dealerbenefits.org.
A: Dealers and their employees are eligible immediately upon starting their U-Haul Authorized Dealership, with no waiting period. Right here, on the dedicated Dealer Benefits website, you will find all the plan details and pricing to make your decision and complete your enrollment. No logon required. It’s all voluntary and portable and maintained solely for the benefit of U-Haul Dealers.
Our national private health insurance exchange has been operating and continuously improving for over two decades. Dealers tell us they much prefer using the private Dealer Benefits Program over the public exchanges, thanks to the great help of our technology affiliates in keeping the process easy.
The Benefits Program offers a wide selection of today’s top insurance plans and workplace benefits approved by your state insurance authority. We know one size does not fit all when it comes to insurance and benefits. Instead, the Benefits Program is based on Dealer requests and our annual due diligence on the insurance and benefits we believe are the best values available in Dealer locations throughout the U.S. We only show the health and benefit plan options that meet our standards for quality and affordability, so Dealers and employees of your businesses — even part-time and 1099 people — can find the benefits they want and need.
To make it easy, the Benefits Program employs the U-Haul “do-it-yourself” philosophy to let Dealers and your employees review your health insurance and other benefit choices on our private exchange. The process is about as easy as we can make it, without having an agent come out and fill out paperwork
Personal private health and financial information and enrollment records are NOT shared with U-Haul or the Benefits Program. Confirmation of your enrollment, ID cards and policy will be sent to you by the plan you pick and they will bill you for the monthly premium. Plan premiums DO NOT get deducted from U-Haul dealership revenue.
The Benefits Program is a national program of Medical, Dental, Accident, Life, Disability, Long Term Care and Medicare Supplement insurance and other important benefits designed for voluntary enrollment by Dealers, business employees and their families. Dealers and employees are also eligible to join the U-Haul Federal Credit Union.
We have done the due diligence for you. Insurance benefits are highly regulated and vary by state. Each year the Benefits Program reviews the state insurance department annual filings of health and benefit plans and rates by the top-rated insurance companies offering plans for the current year. We give you the choice of the best value plans we find each year in each area of the U.S. Health plan premium rates are filed county by county in each state and vary greatly by region based on health provider claim charges in each area.
The Benefits Program for Authorized U-Haul Dealers was established in the year 2000 in response to Dealer requests for help all small businesses need when considering workplace insurance and benefits. The Program was built and is continuously improved based on Dealer input and our evaluation of the market for benefits and insurance services. We keep in touch so we can expand and improve the benefit choices in response to Dealer requests.
Not available in Canada.
A: Yes, but only if you qualify for a SPECIAL mid-year enrollment period (SEP) allowed for limited “life event change” situations. Unfortunately, your ability to switch up your Qualified health coverage mid-year is restricted by Federal and State rules. Let us help you choose wisely! Be sure to check here for our other affordable Health plan options – BASIC and Supplemental Health – available throughout the year and approved in most states.
Important – Voluntarily quitting your current Qualified health plan or being terminated for not paying your premiums are NOT qualifying life events for a SEP to enroll in a new plan mid-year under the Federal “Affordable Care Act” health reform law. You will need to wait until the next fall’s OPEN enrollment period or review other Health coverage options.
Life Events — Outside of the annual OPEN enrollment, you can enroll in a qualified individual health plan that covers pre-existing conditions only if you have certain life events that qualify you for a SEP – SPECIAL 60-day enrollment period.
Counts as a Qualifying Life Event:
- Getting married
- Giving birth, adopting or placement of a child
- Permanently moving to a new area that offers different health plan choices than your previous residential area
- Losing other health coverage (for example, due to a job loss, divorce, dropping off a parent plan at age 26, loss of eligibility for Medicaid or CHIP, a COBRA election or expiration of COBRA coverage, or a health plan being decertified)
Does Not Count as a Qualifying Life Event:
- Voluntarily stopping health coverage
- Your household income no longer qualifies for a Federal tax subsidy
- Having coverage terminated for not paying your premiums
- Starting a new job that does not provide employer-paid health coverage
- Losing coverage that does not qualify as minimum essential coverage, such as short-term medical
- Finding out your health care provider is not covered through your insurance plan
- Change in Immigration status or becoming a U.S. Citizen
If you qualify, your SPECIAL enrollment period lasts 60 days from the date of the qualifying life event. Your qualifying life event must be verified electronically or through documentation you submit on the exchange. Final determination and confirmation of your SPECIAL enrollment period will be provided after you submit documentation supporting any qualifying event(s).
More Year-Round Enrollment Options — The following people may enroll on the Dealer Benefit Program’s private exchange for health coverage year-round:
A: The Benefits Program is a U-Haul-style “do-it-yourself” benefit program, designed to let U.S. dealers and employees sign themselves up online, using our private and secure benefits website (you’re on it if you’re reading this). So you choose your own plans.
You do not need to call the Benefit Department to enroll. If you do call us at (888) 551-9801 during business hours and we don’t connect right away, please leave a message with your dealer number, zip code and preferred email and we’ll get back to you soon.
The professional licensed staff of our benefit and insurance affiliates are available to answer your specific questions on enrolling and plan benefits details in your local area. You will find their 800 numbers at the top of the benefit plan description page when reviewing available plans.
A: No. U-Haul Dealers and employees should know that you are completely free to purchase personal/family “qualified” comprehensive medical insurance (known as ACA or Obamacare “Qualified Health Plans”) OFF the public exchanges, using the Dealer Benefits Program national private exchange, powered by our private exchange technology partner eHealth. You will find our annual selection of health plans that meet both your state and federal requirements with rates and benefits approved for the upcoming year of coverage. We also assist you in checking your eligibility for Advance Premium Tax Credits from the IRS that help lower-income households get “qualified” coverage at a lower subsidized cost.
Remember, health insurance plans and rates are highly regulated by both your state and the federal government. Prices for insured health plans are filed annually by carriers and not subject to negotiation. The cost will be the same or may sometimes be even less when you rely on our plan selection and experienced staff for guidance. If your household is eligible for a federal advance premium credit (tax subsidy), our private exchange is authorized to include it in your enrollment. Our staff is fully trained and properly licensed and appointed.
A: No. All coverage through the Benefits Program for U-Haul Authorized Dealers is voluntary and portable. Each person in the dealership and the dealer’s other businesses can select the combination of insurance and benefits that is right for themselves and their families. In other words, there is no obligation to enroll for coverage under the Benefits Program, but once covered, it’s portable. Dealers and employees can keep their coverage as long as they want it and pay for it, even if they should leave the dealership or the dealership is closed.
Important: Employers having fewer than 50 employees are NOT required under federal regulations to pay for health insurance for their employees. But many Dealers greatly prefer our small business health plans for employees and the tax advantages for the business that go with it. Get a small business health quote – either the new individual coverage health reimbursement account plan or traditional group – from us and then check with your tax advisor on how the tax advantages of these plans can benefit the business and employees.
A: A deductible is a dollar amount of health care charges stated in the plan design that you pay out of pocket (or self-insure) each year, BEFORE the health plan insurance company starts paying health care providers for your claims. A deductible gives you some control over the monthly premium charged by the health insurance company.
If you select an annual deductible amount of $1000, in simple terms that means you are telling the health insurance company to lower its premium cost that you must pay every month, because you will be paying for claims out of your pocket up to $1000 for the year. (Of course, you won’t have out-of-pocket cost for any wellness and preventative care claims covered by your health plan and drug costs are handled separately.) But you still get the benefit of having the insurance company process any claim amounts you may have under your deductible based on the carrier’s discounted contract prices to your health care providers, instead of paying providers high retail charges for out-of-network or uninsured claims. Most importantly, you have health insurance in place for the major claims that could happen.
Only the most expensive health insurance plans provide “first-dollar” coverage and DO NOT have a deductible. Look at it this way: If the deductible is zero, that means you are asking the health insurance company to pay ALL claims you incur with your health care providers each year. Such a plan if available would come at a very high monthly premium cost. Most individuals and small businesses cannot afford complete first-dollar coverage. That is, unless someone else is paying the lion’s share of the premium, such as a large private employer, union or government entity. Low-income households may qualify for federal premium tax credits on Affordable Care Act qualified individual health plans purchased on the exchanges.
So, when selecting your medical plan, it is important to compare the trade-off between the monthly premium you pay to the insurance company, regardless of whether or not you have any claims, and your deductible and the plan limits on your annual out-of-pocket costs if you do have claims during the year.
The trend of health insurers is to offer more health plans with low or without deductibles, reflecting a broad shift toward consumer-centric healthcare that provide wellness and first-dollar coverage for specific types of healthcare. New research has shown that by eliminating deductibles for specific types of health care, these plans can significantly enhance health outcomes, particularly for individuals with chronic conditions and severe complications. Qualified health plans are designed in this fashion to include “essential” coverage. See: Essential Health Benefits.
Our national private exchange identifies the top-rated carriers in each state and what we believe are their best value plans. Each year, health plans continue to change benefits and carriers must re-file their plans to meet state and federal requirements, including premium rates, county by county.
Under federal rules, premium costs for Qualified Comprehensive Major Medical plans vary by your age, your residence location, how many family members are covered, tobacco use, the insurance carrier and the plan design (“metal tier” governing your deductible, copays and out-of-pocket costs: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum), but not health status.
Federal rules for Qualified individual medical insurance plans require coverage of most preventive care, free with no deductible. For example, there are many preventive-care services provided specifically for women under the law. The editors of Health list them as including mammograms, cervical cancer screenings and well-woman visits. Other covered preventive care services include blood pressure, diabetes, depression and cholesterol screenings for adults, and vaccines and well visits for children. You pay nothing for these services – no deductible, copay or coinsurance. Knowing preventive care is covered outside your plan’s deductible makes it much more acceptable to select a plan with a higher deductible to get your monthly premium cost down.
Health Savings Account (HSA) Plans – A smart budgeting strategy is to build up a savings account equal to your deductible, so you can draw on it if needed. That is why the Federal government in 2004 put tax incentives in place for you if you set up an HSA health plan with a bank account that coordinates with a qualifying health insurance plan and meets IRS guidelines for the plan’s annual deductible and out-of-pocket maximum. Deposits to the HSA account are dollars you pay to yourself, not to the insurance company, and are tax-deductible (IRS publishes limits each year). Even better, your unused HSA deposits roll over each year, ready to be used in the future as needed, all the way into retirement. HSA health plans are offered where they are approved by state insurance authorities.
The Benefits Program for Authorized U-Haul Dealers features a comparison-shopping tool makes it easy find out in hard dollars how controlling the amount of your deductible will impact the monthly premium you pay for health insurance.
A: Unfortunately, at this time, health, dental, accident, life insurance and other benefits are only available in the U.S. The Program periodically researches benefit plans in Canada but to date we have been unsuccessful in finding plans that would fit our U-Haul-style “Do-It-Yourself” program requirements and provide substantial pricing benefits for Canadian dealerships. All Program plans offered are approved by state government insurance authorities that regulate U.S. carriers. Canadian Provincial authorities have not approved these plans for Canadians.