Your auto and home insurance policies may provide limited protection for a rental truck and your belongings while in transit. But you’ll likely need more coverage. Luckily, U-Haul offers several insurance plans to protect the equipment you rent and your valuable personal belongings.
What Is U-Haul Insurance?
U-Haul insurance is coverage you can purchase from U-Haul when you rent one of its cargo vans, moving trucks, pickup trucks, trailers, tow dollies, or vans. U-Haul offers several insurance packages for different types of equipment with different levels of coverage. While your car insurance policy or credit card may offer some coverage when renting a passenger car, they won’t likely cover vehicles designed for moving cargo. And if you don’t purchase insurance when renting U-Haul equipment, you might have to pay out of pocket if you have an accident. U-Haul’s moving insurance provides some of the same types of coverage offered in an auto policy, like medical payments coverage and damage waiver coverage, which pays for damages to the equipment you rent. But some U-Haul insurance packages also protect your cargo from damage caused by a collision, fire, or storm.
What Does U-Haul Insurance Cover?
U-Haul offers several insurance packages, although some packages are only offered for specific types of equipment.
Safemove
You can purchase U-Haul’s Safemove insurance package for moving trucks, but not for cargo vans or pickup trucks. Safemove includes:
Damage waiver: Covers accident damage to U-Haul rental equipment, but doesn’t cover damages caused by collisions with overhead objects, such as overpasses.Cargo protection: Covers damage to cargo due to a collision, fire, overturn, or windstorm.Life/medical protection: Medical expenses coverage for the driver and passengers.
Safemove Plus
Safemove Plus provides protection for moving trucks and includes:
All Safemove coverages: Damage waiver, cargo protection, and life/medical protection.Exclusion-free coverage: Unlike the basic Safemove package, Safemove Plus’s damage waiver coverage includes overhead collision damage.Supplemental liability coverage: Provides $1 million in supplemental personal liability coverage.
Pickup Truck and Cargo Van Coverage
For its fleet of cargo vans and pickup trucks, U-Haul only offers collision damage waiver coverage, which features a $150 deductible for accidental damage. Other deductibles may apply for corporate customers.
Safetow
U-Haul offers its Safetow coverage for auto transport, trailer, and tow dolly rentals. It covers damage to the rental equipment, includes life and medical expenses coverage for drivers and passengers, and offers multiple levels of cargo protection.
Safetrip
Safetrip offers flat-rate roadside assistance, which covers:
Fuel deliveryJump startsLockout serviceLost keysStuck vehiclesTrailer hook-up problems
Safestor and Safestor Mobile
U-Haul’s Safestor coverage protects your belongings while stored in a U-Haul storage facility. Safestor Mobile protects personal property in U-Box moving containers. Safestor packages cover losses caused by a wide variety of perils, including:
BurglaryEarthquakesExplosionsFireHailLeaking waterSmokeVandalismVermin
Exclusions
Safemove doesn’t cover damaged tires or equipment damage caused by colliding with overhead objects.Safemove Plus isn’t available in Canada, Connecticut, Louisiana, New Jersey, or New York.Safemove, Safemove Plus, and Safetow don’t cover your personal vehicle or its contents, even when towing it on U-Haul auto transport equipment or in a U-Haul moving truck.Rocking a U-Haul truck to get it unstuck from mud or snow can damage its transmission, and this damage is not covered by Safemove or Safemove Plus.
What Does Your Existing Insurance Cover?
Before renting a moving truck, contact your insurance agent to find out if your auto, home, or renters insurance policies provide any protection for the rental vehicle or your personal belongings while in transit. Your homeowners or renters policy might cover your possessions up to a certain limit. While your car insurance might provide some coverage for a regular rental car, many policies limit coverage to a certain size of vehicle—and moving trucks exceed those limits. However, if you rent a U-Haul cargo van or pickup truck, your personal auto insurance coverage might protect it. In some cases, you may be able to purchase a separate supplemental liability policy and personal effects insurance. But it’s best to speak with an insurance agent before declining rental truck insurance. Although your credit card might cover a rental car, it likely won’t cover a rental moving truck. Consult your card’s terms and conditions before declining rental truck insurance.
Alternative Types of Moving Insurance
Other truck rental agencies offer similar insurance packages to U-Haul’s, though availability may depend on your location.
Penske Truck Rental Insurance
Limited damage waiver: Covers damage to rental trucks and towing equipment. Personal accident insurance: Provides medical expense and accidental death coverages for driver and passengers. Supplemental liability insurance: Offers up to $1 million in liability coverage to safeguard against bodily injury and property damage claims. Cargo insurance: Provides up to $15,000 in coverage for personal possessions transported in a Penske vehicle. Towing insurance: Covers a towed vehicle when attached to or towed by a Penske rental truck.
Budget Truck Rental Insurance
Limited damage and personal damage waivers: Covers damage to or theft of Budget equipment. Supplemental liability insurance: Includes liability protection for bodily injury and property damage claims. Personal and cargo: Protects you and your cargo while driving a Budget rental truck. Auto tow protection: Covers your personal vehicle while towing it with Budget rental equipment. Roadside SafetyNet: Includes roadside services that aren’t covered by the standard rental agreement.
Enterprise Truck Rental Insurance
Damage waiver: Waives or reduces the renter’s responsibility for damage to or loss of rental equipment. Roadside assistance protection: Covers fuel delivery, flat tire service, jump starts, lockout service, and lost keys. Personal accident insurance: Provides ambulance expense coverage, accidental death benefits, and medical expense coverage for driver and passengers. Supplemental liability protection: Provides up to $300,000 in liability coverage.
Third-Party Moving Insurance Companies
If you prefer, you can also purchase third-party truck rental insurance from a handful of companies, including:
Relocation Insurance GroupLakeland InsuranceUNIRISC
Do You Need U-Haul Insurance?
Before purchasing or declining U-Haul insurance, contact your insurance agent to find out if your auto and home insurance policies offer any protection. Usually, your existing policies won’t provide all the protection you need. Even if your car and homeowners policies offer limited protection, it still might make good financial sense to purchase coverage from U-Haul. Insurance packages offered by rental truck agencies often provide the most comprehensive coverage, including protection for rental equipment and coverage for the property you’re transporting. U-Haul’s Safemove Plus package also includes generous $1 million liability coverage, a particularly important benefit when driving a large, heavy vehicle.
