What You Need to Know When Driving in Nevada

Nevada requires minimum liability coverage of $15,000 bodily injury per person, $30,000 bodily injury per accident, and $10,000 property damage. All registered vehicles are required to have this coverage. Nevada requires that all drivers be insured, regardless of whether you are financially able to cover your liability in an accident without a policy. Your insurer must be licensed in the state.

To put it simply, Nevada is strict about insurance requirements. Roadside spot-checks, company data comparisons, and direct mail verification are all methods used by the state to ensure that all drivers are in compliance. If you let your coverage lapse while your registration is still current, the authorities may suspend your registration and charge a reinstatement fee of $250.

When you register your vehicle, you may either sign a declaration that you will maintain an active policy for the entire time the vehicle is registered in the jurisdiction, or you can present a Nevada Evidence of Insurance Card. If you are not the vehicle's owner, but you are registering the car, you must provide either the aforementioned card or a Power of Attorney.

You must carry your card in your vehicle at all times. If a law enforcement officer requests to see it, you must present it.

Other Options to Think About

The state does not have no-fault regulations in place. This means that whoever caused the accident is responsible for all covered losses, so that person's provider will be forced to pay the claims.

Other optional products you should consider if you are a resident include comprehensive coverage and gap insurance. Gap protection is necessary if you still owe a substantial amount of money on your car loan. If you cause an accident, and your vehicle is a total loss, without the protection, you will end up having to continue to make payments on a vehicle you can no longer drive. Comprehensive insurance protects against non-accident related damages, such as fire, water damage, natural disasters (like a tree falling on the car), and if you opt for it, damage to your windshield or aftermarket equipment. With windshields costing upwards of $200 to replace, this product alone may make it well worth the money to have comprehensive protection.

Of course, you are not limited to having only the minimum liability standards. And given the prices of new vehicles these days, if you cause an accident which totals a brand new vehicle, the $10,000 minimum coverage the state requires will not be enough. Also, hospital bills can go through the roof, and $15,000 in bodily injury coverage will be used up in a matter of days. Think honestly about what kind of driver you are, the amount of driving you do, and what the traffic situation in your area is like. Then compare policies between a number of Nevada licensed providers. The lowest priced policy is not necessarily the best. Do your homework and get the policy that works best for your needs.