If you’re planning to relocate to a new place, one of the things you may need to do beforehand is to rent a truck from U-Haul. While renting a U-Haul truck can seem simple enough, you also need to consider factors like what happens when you go through a toll in your U-Haul or if your rented truck has an E-ZPass to help make things easier.
Tolls work with U-Haul by charging every rented vehicle from the company that goes on a toll road. The company is responsible for paying the toll because they are the registered owner of the vehicle. U-Haul, in turn, will charge the client for the toll as specified in the rental contract agreement.
In this article, I will attempt to answer all your toll-related U-Haul questions.
Using Tolls in Your U-Haul
Tolls are a part of life in most major metropolitan areas. Even if you try to skip them by taking back roads and avoiding highways, there’s still a chance you could get snagged at an exit with a tollbooth. So what happens if you go through a toll in a U-Haul vehicle?
Ultimately, U-Haul owns the rental cars, and tolls are obligated to charge the owner of every vehicle that passes through them. Therefore, tolls will be charged directly to U-Haul since they are legally the owner of the passing vehicle — whether that vehicle is rented or not.
U-Haul will be billed directly by the toll company, and U-Haul will subsequently bill the consumer for the toll amount. The specifics of this procedure should be included in the renter’s contract, which all clients must sign before renting their vehicle.
Although U-Haul owns the truck, it’s ultimately the responsibility of the renter to pay for the tolls they drive through. This is because tolls are considered a driving expenditure the consumer is required to pay.
To sum it up: Yes, you can go through tolls with your rented U-Haul. U-Haul technically doesn’t cover your toll expenses for you, as U-Haul charges you the toll fee on top of the amount you pay for renting one of their vehicles.
How Do You Pay U-Haul for Toll Fees?
As I’ve explained, if you sign a rental contract agreement with U-Haul, you’ll also be responsible for the toll fees incurred while using the vehicle. So how do you pay these fees?
U-Haul will notify you via text message and email once the toll receipt has been received and processed. However, you should be aware that this can take some time. U-Haul needs to receive the toll charge from the authorities first before taking another two weeks to process the receipt.
You can pay U-Haul for toll fees online after receiving their confirmation via text or email. Alternatively, if you supplied U-Haul with your credit card details when renting your vehicle, the toll fees can also be charged through your credit card.
It’s important to note that for every toll you take with your rented truck, you’ll be expected to pay a $1 administrative fee on top of the toll fee itself.
To pay toll fees for your U-Haul rental, go here. Keep in mind that toll fees vary depending on the location of the toll booth, so don’t be surprised if there’s a significant difference between what you’ll pay in tolls from one state to another (or even one road to another!).
U-Hauls and E-ZPass
E-ZPass is a toll collecting system that allows motorists to pay tolls electronically.
An electronic tag is fitted to your vehicle to communicate the position of your vehicle’s entry and exit points to the agency you’re traveling with. The relevant toll is then computed and debited from your prepaid toll account.
This system minimizes the need to be physically present at toll booths to pay. Instead, you can skip the long lines and pay your toll fees whenever and wherever it’s convenient.
Does U-Haul Have E-ZPass?
You know that feeling when you get stuck in a mile-long line of cars for what seems like an eternity? It’s even more frustrating when you finally reach the front of the line only to be told by a person in uniform that you need to pay up. E-ZPass should, in theory, be a workaround to this problem.
U-Haul does not have E-ZPass, unfortunately. In fact, U-Haul vehicles do not directly work with any toll transponder services at all. In other words, you cannot go through an E-ZPass toll (or similar services) with your U-Haul.
This is unfortunate because, as I’ve explained, E-ZPass is an extremely convenient way to pay toll fees. But don’t give up hope yet: In some instances, you can use E-ZPass with your U-Haul.
How To Use Your E-ZPass in a U-Haul
If you want to use your E-ZPass in a U-Haul, the vehicle registered with your E-ZPass account needs to be of the same class as the U-Haul vehicle. Otherwise, you’ll have to manually update the U-Haul truck’s details in your E-ZPass account. This ensures that you pay the commensurate amount to the toll company.
If this isn’t an option, you can always give the U-Haul office from which you leased your vehicle a call. They should be able to give you the information you need to use your E-ZPass in a U-Haul vehicle.
If all else fails, try using a different transponder service. This may seem inconvenient initially, but if you’re able to find a company where you can minimize the stress from moving as much as possible, things will actually be easier in the long run.
Conclusion
Tolls are often inevitable when you’re moving to a new place, but they don’t have to be stressful. For example, you can make use of U-Haul and related services like E-ZPass to make your experience easier.
Your U-Haul rental contract should have information regarding any toll fees you need to pay on top of the rental itself.
You can use U-Haul with E-ZPass in theory. However, your rented vehicle must be of the same class as the one registered with your E-ZPass account. Otherwise, you have to manually update your details or contact U-Haul for further assistance.