Every day innocent victims are injured or killed in Nevada auto accidents. Our attorneys can help you to get justice and compensation.
Auto Accidents
Every day innocent victims are injured or killed in Nevada auto accidents. Our attorneys can help you to get justice and compensation.
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Nevada law requires property owners to maintain safe conditions. When they fail to do so, and people get injured, our lawyers are here to help.
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After a car accident in Nevada, you will have to file a claim with your auto insurance company in order to receive reimbursement for your losses. Here are five steps to take to make sure you recover what you need:
Insurance type in Nevada | What it covers | Required or optional | At-fault party | Minimum coverage |
Bodily injury or death | Injuries or death of people in the other vehicle | Required | You | $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident |
Injury to or destruction of property | Damage to the other vehicle or property | Required | You | $20,000 |
Med Pay | Your injuries and your passengers’ injuries | Optional | Regardless of fault | At least $1,000 |
Uninsured/Underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) |
Your injuries and your passengers’ injuries if the other driver has little or no insurance or commits hit-and-run | Optional | Other driver | $25,000 per person, $50,000 per accident |
Collision | Damage to your vehicle | Optional | Regardless of fault | Up to your car’s actual cash value |
The best way to ensure that your car insurance claim recovers the compensation you need is to hire an experienced personal injury lawyer to file it for you. They will know what information to include and what to not include. They will also know whether to file a claim against your insurance company of the other driver’s liability insurance policy. This can significantly increase the amount that you recover.
Hiring a personal injury attorney also saves you time and lots of stress. This is especially important after a serious car accident. It lets you focus on your immediate needs and your physical recovery.
To file an insurance claim, you will have to provide your insurer with the information they need to process it. This includes:
Once you have provided this information, an insurance adjuster will investigate your claim.
During this process, there are several things that you can say that can hurt your claim. It is imperative to NOT say anything that might:
Insurance companies frequently use all of these things to reduce their payout. If your statement about what happened contradicts what you say later on, the insurance company will use whatever version benefits them the most. If you downplay your losses, your insurer will take you at your word and reduce its payout.
It is important to remember that, even though you regularly pay premiums to your car insurance company, your insurance company does not have your interests at heart. The insurance company only cares about paying out as little money as possible to satisfy your claim.
Your insurance company will demand an estimate of your covered losses. Which losses are covered will depend on your insurance policy.
If you only have insurance coverage for property damage, you would get an estimate of the repair cost from an auto body shop.
If it also covers bodily injuries, you would provide documents like your medical bills and other medical records.
Note that these are estimates from healthcare professionals and mechanics. They can provide more accurate estimates than you are.
When the insurance company concludes its investigation, it will make an initial settlement offer. This is a sum of money that it will provide, in exchange for a release. If you sign the release, you agree to settle your claim and not pursue it any further.
It is extremely important to discuss a settlement offer with an experienced car accident attorney before accepting or rejecting it. Your lawyer will have been through this process numerous times before. They will have a better understanding of whether the offer is adequate.
It is not uncommon for insurance companies to make an initial settlement offer that drastically undercompensates you. This is their opportunity to make the claim go away for as little as possible. You will receive way less than you need to recover, but your insurance company will protect its profits. If you accept a low offer, you may end up paying the majority of your medical expenses out-of-pocket.
Most car insurance companies in Nevada have policies that stipulate when a claim must be filed. These policy requirements must be followed or they can undermine your claim.
Under Nevada law, you may also have to report the accident to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) within 10 days if:
This report is made on an SR-1 Traffic Accident Report Form. If a police officer or a member of the Nevada Highway Patrol has already submitted one for the accident, you do not need to send another one.
Failing to file a report can lead to a driver’s license suspension.[2]
Nevada’s statute of limitations for car accidents is two years.[3] If your insurance claim does not lead to a fair settlement offer, under state law you have up to 2 years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury claim. If you file it after this time period has expired, it can be quickly dismissed.
If you can do so, immediately after a car crash in Nevada you should:
If you need emergency medical attention, then focus on getting that and do not worry about anything else.
For more information, see our related articles:
Legal References:
[1] Nevada Revised Statutes (NRS) 484E.070.
[2] NRS 484E.080.
[3] NRS 11.190(4)(e).
A former Los Angeles prosecutor, attorney Neil Shouse graduated with honors from UC Berkeley and Harvard Law School (and completed additional graduate studies at MIT). He has been featured on CNN, Good Morning America, Dr Phil, The Today Show and Court TV. Mr Shouse has been recognized by the National Trial Lawyers as one of the Top 100 Criminal and Top 100 Civil Attorneys.