U-Haul 2009 Annual Report Download - page 64

AMERCO AND CONSOLIDATED ENTITIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS -- (CONTINUED)
Description of Legal Entities
AMERCO, is the holding company for:
U-Haul International, Inc. (“U-Haul”),
Amerco Real Estate Company (“Real Estate”),
Republic Western Insurance Company (“RepWest”),
Oxford Life Insurance Company (“Oxford”).
Unless the context otherwise requires, the term “Company,” “we,” “us” or “our” refers to AMERCO and all of its legal
subsidiaries.
Description of Operating Segments
AMERCO has three current reportable segments. They are Moving and Storage, Property and Casualty Insurance and
Life Insurance. SAC Holding II was also a reportable segment through October 2007.
Moving and Storage operations include AMERCO, U-Haul, and Real Estate and the wholly-owned subsidiaries of U-
Haul and Real Estate and consist of the rental of trucks and trailers, sales of moving supplies, sales of towing accessories,
sales of propane, the rental of self-storage spaces to the “do-it-yourself” mover and management of self-storage properties
owned by others. Operations are conducted under the registered trade name U-Haul® throughout the United States and
Canada.
Property and Casualty Insurance includes RepWest and its wholly-owned subsidiaries and ARCOA risk retention
group. Property and Casualty Insurance provides loss adjusting and claims handling for U-Haul through regional offices
across North America. Property and Casualty Insurance also underwrites components of the Safemove, Safetow and
Safestor protection packages to U-Haul customers. We continue to focus on increasing the penetration of these products.
The business plan for Property and Casualty Insurance includes offering property and casualty products in other U-Haul
related programs. The ARCOA risk retention group is a captive insurer owned by the Company whose purpose is to
provide insurance products related to the moving and storage business.
Life Insurance includes Oxford and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. Oxford provides life and health insurance products
primarily to the senior market through the direct writing or reinsuring of life insurance, Medicare supplement and annuity
policies. Additionally, Oxford administered the self-insured employee health and dental plans for Arizona employees of the
Company through December 31, 2008.
SAC Holding II owns self-storage properties that are managed by U-Haul under property management agreements and
act as independent U-Haul rental equipment dealers. AMERCO, through its subsidiaries, has contractual interests in certain
SAC Holding II properties entitling AMERCO to potential future income based on the financial performance of these
properties. Prior to November 2007, AMERCO was considered the primary beneficiary of these contractual interests.
Consequently, for those reporting periods prior to November 2007, we included the results of SAC Holding II in the
consolidated financial statements of AMERCO, as required by FIN 46(R).
Note 3: Accounting Policies
Use of Estimates
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with the generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) in
the United States requires management to make estimates and judgments that affect the amounts reported in the financial
statements and accompanying notes. The accounting policies that we deem most critical to us and that require
management’s most difficult and subjective judgments include the principles of consolidation, the recoverability of
property, plant and equipment, the adequacy of insurance reserves, the recognition and measurement of impairments for
investments accounted for under SFAS 115, Accounting for Certain Investments in Debt and Equity Securities and the
recognition and measurement of income tax assets and liabilities. The actual results experienced by the Company may
differ from management’s estimates.
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