Where pay plans meet benefit rules.
- Hours of service kept separate from flagged hours
- One ownership map for every store and shop
- An affordability method that fits variable pay
- Enrollment booked around appointments and month-end
A flat-rate tech's flagged hours measure jobs, not clock time. The ACA counts hours of service, meaning hours paid or owed for work plus paid leave, and the gap between the two can change who is full-time.
Commission pay raises the same question. For employees not paid by the hour, which can include commissioned sales staff and, depending on the pay plan, flat-rate techs, the IRS accepts actual hours or an equivalency of 8 hours a day or 40 a week, if it doesn't substantially understate hours. Have payroll or your tax adviser confirm.
Dealer groups add a third layer. A main store, used lot and body shop under the same owners are combined for the ACA employer-size test, and Washington counts affiliated companies as one employer for small-group size.
Four levers for a dealership or shop.
An affordability safe harbor that fits the pay plan
Rate of pay assumes a steady rate.
For an applicable large employer, the employee's share of the lowest-cost self-only plan that provides minimum value can't top 9.96% for 2026 plan years or 10.22% for 2027. The safe harbors are W-2 wages, rate of pay (hourly rate times 130, or monthly salary) and the federal poverty line. Rate of pay suits steady pay, so commission-heavy roles may point to W-2 or the poverty line. Test it in our affordability calculator, then have payroll or your tax adviser confirm.
Classes for salaried and non-salaried staff
An ICHRA can fund pay types differently.
With an ICHRA, employees buy individual coverage with an allowance you set by class. Salaried managers and non-salaried staff, such as flat-rate techs and commission-only sales, can sit in separate classes. If one class keeps a group plan, the ICHRA class needs 10 or more people when you have fewer than 100 employees. Notice is due 90 or more days ahead of the plan year.
Small-group or level-funded
Both can work for a shop. The terms decide.
A fully insured small-group plan for 50 or fewer holds adult age rates within 3 to 1 and doesn't rate on health history, though carriers may require as much as 75% participation, or every eligible employee when the group has three or fewer. A level-funded plan is underwritten on your group: one fixed monthly payment funds a claims account, stop-loss coverage and administration. Its price can come back higher than expected, the carrier can decline the group, renewals follow your claims, and a surplus refund is possible, not promised.
Income protection explained in dollars
Medical pays health bills. Disability replaces pay.
Variable pay makes the earnings definition in a disability policy decisive. Compare the waiting period, benefit duration, exclusions and whether commissions and bonuses count, then explain it at enrollment in dollars per month.
Two small businesses, one large employer.
Illustrative: one owner controls an equipment dealership with 30 full-time employees and a repair shop with 18, so together they have 48. Six part-time lot attendants averaging 80 hours a month add 480 hours, and 480 divided by 120 is 4 full-time equivalents.
At 52, the combined business would be an applicable large employer if that was the prior calendar year's average, and the same ownership facts feed Washington's small-group size test. Our full-time equivalent calculator does the math; have payroll or your tax adviser confirm the grouping.
A renewal that stays clear of month-end.
Five months out: settle the hours method
Payroll confirms how hours of service are recorded for flat-rate and commission staff, and which safe harbor you'll use.
Four months out: one census, every store
Home ZIP code, date of birth, pay type and location for everyone in every related business, plus the ownership chart. See our census page.
Before the 90-day mark: price and decide
Small-group, level-funded and ICHRA quotes on one census. An ICHRA needs notice in employees' hands 90 or more days ahead of the plan year.
Mid-month: enroll around the schedule
Book sessions away from the month-end push and fit techs in between appointments. Education is included at no extra fee for client teams.
After go-live: one administrator per store
Each store enters hires and terminations in Employee Navigator; we handle carrier changes and coordinate the third-party COBRA administrator, where vendor fees may apply.
What to send, and what to check.
Send this
A census with home ZIP codes, dates of birth and pay type; the current plan summary and renewal; an ownership chart; and payroll's hours-of-service report for flat-rate and commission staff.
Check this
Safety eyewear. Techs may assume the vision plan covers prescription safety glasses. Confirm it before anyone promises it.
What dealers and shop owners ask us.
Can we make new techs wait 90 days for coverage?
Up to 90 days, not longer. A tech hired full-time and year-round is assessed month by month, so a measurement period doesn't stretch the wait. A shorter wait can help you compete for experienced techs.
Does voluntary accident coverage replace workers' comp?
No. L&I handles work injuries for the employees it covers, and most Washington employers get workers' comp through L&I. Voluntary accident coverage is employee-paid through payroll deduction and supplements medical.
We're opening another store. What changes?
Usually the count. Related businesses are combined, so add the new store to the next employer-size review, check the network near it and set up its administrator before the first hire. See growing or adding a location.
Do part-time porters and detailers affect the ACA count?
Yes, as fractions. Add each part-timer's monthly hours, capping anyone at 120, and divide by 120. That joins your count of full-time employees, those with 130 or more hours of service. Our ACA compliance page covers the rest.
Official sources: the IRS on applicable large employers and full-time employees, the Washington OIC on small-business health coverage and HealthCare.gov on individual coverage HRAs. General information, not legal or tax advice.
Bring payroll's numbers. We'll build around them.
Send a census with pay types and an ownership chart, and we'll quote every option on one set of facts.