Las Vegas Car Insurance Laws - Auto Coverage

Las Vegas Car Insurance Laws - Auto Coverage

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One of the things I'm often asked by clients, or people in general, is, "How much insurance should I have? What are the Las Vegas car insurance laws?" That has actually been set by statute. In order to drive legally in Nevada, you have to have at least $15,000 per person in liability coverage. It's funny, that limit was set back in 1958, when the dollar went a lot further than it does now. I encourage all my clients, and everyone I talk to, to get higher limits. It doesn't cost much more; usually just a few dollars more per month can dramatically increase your liability coverage. The other thing that you need to remember, though, is we're having a severe economic crisis in this country, and Nevada has been hit particularly hard. Conservative estimates are that 1 in 6 drivers don't even have car insurance right now. That means that if you're hit by somebody and you're hurt and they don't have coverage, typically they don't have any assets, so you're not going to be able to get any money from that person or that person's insurance company, because it doesn't exist, and you're going to be on the hook for all your medical bills and all your problems, and the cost of your vehicle.

So I encourage all of my clients to get what's called "Uninsured Motorist Protection". Simply stated, that just means that if I get hit by somebody that doesn't have insurance, my insurance company is going to step in and cover it as if they insure that other person. Uninsured motorist carries another benefit: If I'm hit by somebody that has insurance but doesn't have much, and it isn't enough to cover all my harms and my losses, I can turn to my uninsured carrier, and they supplement the insurance the other driver has. It becomes under-insured coverage. I encourage everyone to talk to their insurance agent, and he or she will answer all those questions in more detail, but uninsured motorist is definitely something everybody should have.

I'm often asked by people, "If I'm involved in a Las Vegas auto-accident, what are some of the first things that I should do?" Well, of course, the first thing you should do if you're involved in a motor-vehicle accident is make sure that your vehicles are safely off the roadway so that further accidents don't happen. Of course, if anybody's seriously injured and requires medical attention, it's never a problem to call 911 and seek emergency personal. Beyond that, it's important to obtain the identity of the driver you believe caused the accident, or who is responsible for the accident. You can do that in two ways: It's important to get the driver's name, address, and even a telephone number, but also cross-reference that with the driver's actual driver's license or some other form of I.D., just to insure the person's name that you're getting is actually the person involved in the accident. If you have a cell phone or any other type of apparatus that can take pictures, it's a good idea to take pictures of your vehicle as well as the vehicle involved in the accident with you. That's just to preserve evidence in the event something were to come up down the road, or there's some form of denial regarding the amount of damage to the vehicles involved.

Of course, you should summon the police unless it happens on private property. That's important because without some determination of fault it makes it more difficult to successfully deal with the insurance company for the at fault driver. In other words, when the police are summoned and a ticket is issued for the fault of the driver who caused the accident, you're more likely to have an easier time convincing that driver's insurance company that there is liability and that they should be compensating you for such things as the damage to your vehicle, a rental car, as well as a claim for injuries that you may be making in the event that you're injured. So those are just a few tips that I would recommend in the event that you're involved in an accident here in Las Vegas.

A question I'm often asked is, "Do I need under-insured motorist coverage in Las Vegas?", and the answer I always give is, "Absolutely!". Especially in this economic time where we're finding now, more than ever, people on the roadways of Las Vegas have no auto insurance coverage, and as a result, if you're hit by someone without insurance, your only recourse is to use your under-insured motorist coverage. If you haven't spoken to your agent recently about what coverages you have, I strongly recommend you talk to your agent about obtaining at least $15,000 worth of under-insured motorist coverage per person. This will protect everyone in your vehicle in the event you're unfortunate enough to be involve in an accident with an under-insured driver.

One of the most important reasons to have under-insured motorist coverage is you'll rely on it to pay medical bills, which aren't covered by health insurance, that you incur as a result of injury sustained in an accident with an uninsured or under-insured motorist. Also, if you miss time from work under-insured motorist coverage can compensate you for that time you missed from work as a result of being insured. Also, compensation for pain and suffering: Without under-insured motorist coverage, if you're involved in an accident with someone who doesn't have liability insurance, you have no recourse whatsoever. I strongly recommend, if you haven't spoken to your agent recently about your auto coverages, first and foremost - make sure you have under-insured coverage on your policy. Also check the limits of that coverage. In this day in age, with the cost of medical expenses going up yearly, it's important to have a sufficient amount of under-insured coverage. This is an expense well worth it, and one that we strongly recommend you take a look at. Make the change sooner rather than later.

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