Uninsured is a coverage fact, not a reason the crash did not happen.
An uninsured driver in Nevada is more common than people who buy insurance like to believe. A lapsed policy, a borrowed car, a rideshare period that does not match the app, a hit-and-run on I-15 at night: the injury is still an injury. The first job is the same as any crash (safety, care, photographs), then a hard look at whose contract still responds.
This page is general information, not a reading of your declarations page. Summit Trial Attorneys is Nevada counsel: Renee Finch, NSBN 13118, and Jaclyn Kliewer, NSBN 14898. Call or text 702.789.4200 or write intake@stattorneys.com.
Keep what to do after a car crash next to this guide. Fault still has to be proven. Keep Nevada comparative negligence next to this guide.
Start with your own uninsured-motorist coverage.
Nevada liability insurance is required. Uninsured and underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage is different. Under Nevada law and related offer rules, auto liability policies generally must include uninsured-motorist protection unless the named insured rejects it in writing on the insurer’s form. The Nevada Division of Insurance describes UM/UIM as optional because rejection is allowed. Many people still have the coverage and have not looked at the limits since they bought the car.
Pull the declarations page. Look for uninsured and underinsured motorist limits. Tell your own carrier about the crash promptly. A UM claim is a first-party claim against your policy, not a third-party claim against the other driver’s insurer. Your carrier can still dispute fault and medical proof. It is a contract you already paid for, not a gift.
Cooperation clauses still apply. Recorded statements still deserve caution, even with your own company. Read should I talk to the insurance company after an accident before you sit for a recording. Ask counsel before you settle with an at-fault driver or sign a release that could affect your UM rights.
Hit-and-run is a notice problem as much as a missing driver.
If the other car left, the file needs every camera and plate fragment you can still get. Hotel porte-cocheres, gas stations, and other drivers’ phones matter more when there is no insurance card on the dash. Report the crash. Get the police incident number. Tell your carrier that the driver is unidentified.
Policies often treat unidentified motorists as uninsured motorists only if certain notice and reporting conditions are met. Those conditions can be shorter than the civil statute of limitations. Do not assume Nevada's typical two-year injury filing period is the only clock. Civil injury deadlines and policy notice conditions are not the same clock. Call sooner than you think you need to.
The driver personally, and anyone else who may owe a duty.
An uninsured motorist can still be sued. Collecting a judgment from a person with no policy and no assets is a different conversation, and it should be an honest one. That is not a reason to skip the investigation. People sometimes have a household policy, an owner who lent the car, an employer, or a commercial overlay you only find by asking.
Rideshare crashes add layers that are not “uninsured” in the ordinary sense. Period on the app can change which policy responds. If a truck is involved, the record is larger: semi-truck crashes and truck evidence. If an insurer that should respond is stalling, that is bad faith insurance territory, not a reason to give up the UM claim.
What to do in the first days after you learn they are uninsured.
- Keep medical care going and keep the paper
- Photograph vehicles, plates, and the scene while they still exist
- Report to police if that has not happened, and get the number
- Notify your own carrier in writing that the other driver is uninsured or unidentified
- Do not sign a release to “close the property damage” without reading what else it covers
Nevada comparative negligence still applies inside a UM claim. An insurer can argue your percentage. Read Nevada comparative negligence. Summit does not promise a result. The office is at 8488 Rozita Lee Ave, Building 3, Suite 100, Las Vegas, NV 89113.
Bring your declarations page, the crash report, and the claim number. We will tell you whether Summit may be able to help.
Free case reviewQuestions people bring to the first call.
These answers are general information. They are meant to help you prepare for a conversation, not to replace advice about your situation.
Nevada requires insurance. How is the other driver uninsured?
The requirement is real. Compliance is not universal. Policies lapse. People drive borrowed cars. Some never buy coverage. An uninsured driver does not erase the crash. It changes which contract you look at first.
What is uninsured motorist coverage?
UM coverage is protection you buy on your own auto policy for injuries caused by an uninsured or, in related forms, underinsured driver, and often for certain hit-and-run facts. The policy language controls. Read your declarations page and ask counsel before you assume it does not apply.
The other driver fled. Is that the same problem?
Hit-and-run files need the same scene work, plus prompt notice to your carrier. Policies often have special notice and reporting conditions for unidentified drivers. Do not wait to “find them first” before you tell your insurer.
If I have no UM coverage, is there nothing to do?
Not necessarily. The at-fault driver can still be a civil defendant. Collectability is a separate, honest question. Other coverage (household policies, a vehicle owner, an employer) may exist. A conversation is how you find out, not a website.
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