Item 1. Business
Company Overview
We are North America’s largest “do-it-yourself” moving and storage operator through our subsidiary U-Haul International, Inc. (“U-Haul”). U-Haul is synonymous with “do-it-yourself” moving and storage and is a leader in supplying products and services to help people move and store their household and commercial goods. Our primary service objective is to provide a better and better product or service to more and more people at a lower and lower cost. Unless the context otherwise requires, the term “AMERCO,” “Company,” “we,” “us,” or “our” refers to AMERCO, a Nevada Corporation, and all of its legal subsidiaries, on a consolidated basis.
We were founded in 1945 as a sole proprietorship under the name "U-Haul Trailer Rental Company" and have rented trailers ever since. Starting in 1959, we rented trucks on a one-way and in-town basis exclusively through independent U-Haul dealers. In 1974, we began developing our network of U-Haul managed retail centers, through which we rent our trucks and trailers, self-storage rooms and sell moving and self-storage products and services to complement our independent dealer network.
We rent our distinctive orange and white U-Haul trucks and trailers as well as offer self-storage rooms through a network of 1,450 Company operated retail moving centers and approximately 15,500 independent U-Haul dealers. We also sell U-Haul brand boxes, tape and other moving and self-storage products and services to “do-it-yourself” moving and storage customers at all of our distribution outlets and through our eMove® web site.
We believe U-Haul is the most convenient supplier of products and services addressing the needs of North America’s “do-it-yourself” moving and storage market. Our broad geographic coverage throughout the United States and Canada and our extensive selection of U-Haul brand moving equipment rentals, self-storage rooms and related moving and storage products and services provide our customers with convenient “one-stop” shopping.
Since 1945 U-Haul has incorporated sustainable practices into its everyday operations. We believe that our basic business premise of equipment sharing helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reduces the need for total large capacity vehicles. We continue to look for ways to reduce waste within our business and are dedicated to manufacturing reusable components and recyclable products. We believe that our commitment to sustainability, through our products and services and everyday operations has helped us to reduce our impact on the environment.
Through Repwest Insurance Company (“Repwest”), our property and casualty insurance subsidiary, we manage the property, liability and related insurance claims processing for U-Haul. Oxford Life Insurance Company (“Oxford”), our life insurance subsidiary, sells life insurance, Medicare supplement insurance, annuities and other related products to non U-Haul customers.
Available Information
AMERCO and U-Haul are each incorporated in Nevada. U-Haul’s internet address is uhaul.com. On AMERCO’s investor relations web site, amerco.com, we post the following filings as soon as practicable after they are electronically filed with or furnished to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”): our Annual Report on Form 10-K, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, our Current Reports on Form 8-K, our proxy statement related to our annual meeting of stockholders, and any amendments to those reports or statements filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). All such filings on our web site are available free of charge. Additionally, you will find these materials on the SEC’s website at sec.gov.
Products and Rental Equipment
Our customers are primarily “do-it-yourself” household movers. U-Haul moving equipment is specifically designed, engineered and manufactured for the “do-it-yourself” household mover. These “do-it-yourself” movers include individuals and families moving their belongings from one home to another, college students moving their belongings, vacationers and sports enthusiasts needing extra space or having special towing needs, people trying to save on home furniture and home appliance delivery costs, and “do-it-yourself” home remodeling and gardening enthusiasts who need to transport materials.
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As of March 31, 2012, our rental fleet consisted of approximately 106,000 trucks, 83,000 trailers and 33,000 towing devices. This equipment and our U-Haul brand of self-moving products and services are available through our network of managed retail moving centers and independent U-Haul dealers. Independent U-Haul dealers receive rental equipment from the Company, act as rental agents and are paid a commission based on gross revenues generated from their U-Haul rentals.
Our rental truck chassis are manufactured by domestic and foreign truck manufacturers. These chassis are joined with the U-Haul designed and manufactured van boxes primarily at U-Haul operated manufacturing and assembly facilities strategically located throughout the United States. U-Haul rental trucks feature our proprietary Lowest DeckSM, which provides our customers with extra ease of loading. The loading ramps on our trucks are the widest in the industry, which reduce the effort needed to move belongings. Our trucks are fitted with convenient, padded rub rails with tie downs on every interior wall. Our Gentle Ride SuspensionSM helps our customers safely move delicate and prized possessions. Also, the engineers at our U-Haul Technical Center determined that the softest ride in our trucks was at the front of the van box. Consequently, we designed the part of the van box that hangs over the front cab of the truck to be the location for our customers to place their most fragile items during their move. We call this area Mom’s AtticSM.
Our distinctive trailers are also manufactured at these same U-Haul operated manufacturing and assembly facilities. These trailers are well suited to the low profile of many of today’s newly manufactured automobiles. Our engineering staff is committed to making our trailers easy to tow, safe, aerodynamic and fuel efficient.
To provide our self-move customers with added value, our rental trucks and trailers are designed with fuel efficiency in mind. Many of our newer trucks are fitted with fuel economy gauges, another tool that assists our customers in conserving fuel. To help make our rental equipment more reliable, we routinely perform extensive preventive maintenance and repairs.
We also provide customers with equipment to transport their vehicle. We provide two towing options; auto transport, in which all four wheels are off the ground and a tow dolly, in which the front wheels of the towed vehicle are off the ground.
To help our customers load their boxes and larger household appliances and furniture, we offer several accessory rental items. Our utility dolly has a lightweight design and is easy to maneuver. Another rental accessory is our four wheel dolly, which provides a large, flat surface for moving dressers, wall units, pianos and other large household items. U-Haul appliance dollies provide the leverage needed to move refrigerators, freezers, washers and dryers easily and safely. These utility, furniture and appliance dollies, along with the low decks and the wide loading ramps on U-Haul trucks and trailers, are designed for easy loading and unloading of our customers’ belongings.
The total package U-Haul offers the “do-it-yourself” household mover doesn’t end with trucks, trailers and accessory rental items. Our moving supplies include a wide array of affordably priced U-Haul brand boxes, tape and packing materials. We also provide specialty boxes for dishes, computers and sensitive electronic equipment, as well as tape, security locks, and packing supplies. U-Haul brand boxes are specifically sized to make loading easier.
We estimate that U-Haul is North America’s largest seller and installer of hitches and towing systems. In addition to towing U-Haul equipment, these hitching and towing systems can tow jet skis, motorcycles, boats, campers and horse trailers. Our hitches, ball mounts, and hitch balls undergo stringent testing requirements. Each year, more than one million customers visit our locations for expertise on complete towing systems, trailer rentals and the latest in towing accessories.
U-Haul has one of North America’s largest propane refilling networks, with over 1,060 locations providing this convenient service. We employ trained, certified personnel to refill all propane cylinders and alternative fuel vehicles. Our network of propane dispensing locations is one of the largest automobile alternative refueling networks in North America.