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Nevada Business Insurance: What Coverage Do You Need

Last verified: November 5, 2026

Nevada makes two kinds of business insurance mandatory: workers' compensation as soon as you have an employee, and liability coverage on every registered vehicle. Everything else on this page is a choice, usually one a landlord, lender or client makes for you. Sort your coverage in that order: what the law forces, what your contracts force, then what your own risk justifies.

What Nevada Law Requires and What It Does Not

Nevada has no general statute that says a business must carry liability insurance. Two coverages are required by statute, and only in the situations shown below. Everything else is a business decision.

CoverageRequired by Nevada law?Source
Workers' compensationYes, once you have an employee under a contract of hireNRS 616B.633
Auto liability, $25,000 / $50,000 / $20,000Yes, for every motor vehicle registered in Nevada (mopeds excepted)NRS 485.185
Liability insurance for motor carriers and tow carsYes, if you are one of those carriers, in an amount set by the regulatorNRS 706.291
General liability, commercial property, professional liability, business owner's policyNo statute for businesses in general; leases, loans, contracts and some licenses can require themYour lease, loan or client contract

Workers' Compensation: The One Policy You Cannot Skip

Where an employer has any employee under a contract of hire, the workers' compensation law is "conclusive, compulsory and obligatory" (NRS 616B.633). That includes part-time and seasonal staff. The statute excludes a short list of workers, such as casual employment outside your trade, household domestic service and certain farm labor (NRS 616A.110); if you think a worker falls in an exclusion, get that answer from the Division of Industrial Relations before you rely on it.

The cost of skipping it is larger than the premium you saved. The Administrator can charge you the premiums you would have owed for up to 6 years, plus interest (NRS 616D.200). A first offense is a misdemeanor, and it becomes a category C felony if an employee suffers substantial bodily harm or dies while you were uninsured, or if it is a repeat offense within 7 years. An injured employee of an uninsured employer can also sue you directly, and the statute presumes your negligence caused the injury (NRS 616B.636).

The trade is exclusive remedy. When you carry the coverage, benefits are paid without regard to fault and the employee's rights are generally limited to the compensation system (NRS 616A.020).

How to get covered:

  • Private insurer: the normal route. Ask the carrier that already writes your other business policies; it will rate the policy on your payroll and the job classes your employees work in.
  • Self-insurance: only for employers the Commissioner of Insurance certifies. The initial test includes a tangible net worth of at least $2,500,000 (NRS 616B.300), so this is not a small-business option.
  • Self-insured association: a group of five or more employers can qualify as an association, but private-employer groups must belong to a trade association incorporated in Nevada that has existed for at least 5 years (NRS 616B.350).

If you are a sole proprietor with no employees, you do not need a policy. You can elect coverage for yourself by filing a written notice with the Administrator and a private carrier (NRS 616B.659). Ask your carrier whether owners, members and officers of your entity count as employees on your policy, because the answer depends on your structure.

If you hire subcontractors, read the principal contractor rules before you assume their coverage is their problem: under NRS 616A.210 a principal contractor can be treated as the employer of subcontractors and their employees if no one provides coverage. The Division of Industrial Relations explains this in its Nevada Employer Coverage Requirements (PDF, 12/12/2022), and its Workers' Compensation employer resources page lists the posting and affirmation forms.

Commercial Auto: The 25/50/20 Floor Is Not a Business Policy

Every owner of a motor vehicle registered in Nevada must continuously carry liability insurance of at least $25,000 for bodily injury or death of one person, $50,000 for two or more people in one crash, and $20,000 for property damage (NRS 485.185). That is the legal minimum for any registered vehicle, not a recommendation for a vehicle that carries your tools, staff or inventory.

The practical problem is the personal auto policy. Many personal policies exclude or limit business use, so a delivery run or a job-site trip can fall outside them. Read the exclusions on your current policy and ask the insurer in writing whether your use is covered before you put a business vehicle on it. If you operate as a motor carrier or run a tow car, a separate liability filing is required and the amount is set by the Nevada Transportation Authority or the Department of Motor Vehicles (NRS 706.291).

General Liability: Optional by Law, Usually Required by Contract

General liability pays third-party claims for bodily injury, property damage and advertising injury. No Nevada statute makes it mandatory for businesses in general, so the real driver is your lease, your lender or the client you want to work for. Those documents set the limits, the named additional insureds and the proof-of-coverage format. Read them for the per-occurrence and aggregate figures instead of buying to a rule of thumb.

It does not cover your employees' injuries (workers' compensation does), your professional mistakes (professional liability does) or damage to your own property (commercial property does). A claim that falls into one of those gaps is paid out of your own pocket.

Property, Professional Liability and Business Owner's Policies

  • Commercial property: covers your equipment, inventory and, if you own it, the building. Read the policy's exclusions for flood and water damage before you sign, and ask your agent in writing what is and is not covered. Landlords often require tenants to insure their own contents.
  • Professional liability (errors and omissions): for businesses that sell advice or finished work, such as consulting, design, bookkeeping or software. It covers a client's claim that your work caused them a financial loss. Some licensing boards or client contracts require it; Nevada has no blanket requirement.
  • Business owner's policy (BOP): bundles general liability, commercial property and usually business interruption. It fits an office, shop or small restaurant with ordinary risks. It does not replace workers' compensation or professional liability.

Industry Rules to Check Before You Buy

Several Nevada industries have their own insurance or bonding rules on top of the general ones. Check the page for your industry before you finalize a quote:

What It Costs

This page does not quote price ranges, because we could not tie them to a published Nevada source and an unsourced range would only anchor you to a number. Premiums depend on your classification, payroll or revenue, claims history, limits and deductibles. Workers' compensation is rated on payroll and job class, general liability usually on revenue or payroll, and commercial auto on the vehicle, drivers and use. The only way to get a real figure is a quote built on your actual numbers. Budget it in your startup costs next to the state fees in our cost to start a business in Nevada guide.

How to Get Quotes and Compare Them

  1. Write down what you need before you call: entity type, number of employees and payroll, annual revenue, what you do, property addresses and values, vehicles and drivers, and any prior claims.
  2. Read your lease, loan and key client contracts first and note every required coverage and limit.
  3. Get at least three quotes and compare the exclusions, deductibles and limits line by line, not just the premium. The cheapest policy is often the one with the exclusion that matters to you.
  4. Confirm the agent and the insurer are licensed in Nevada using the Nevada Division of Insurance license search.
  5. Ask for a certificate of insurance in the format your landlord or client requires, and calendar the renewal date.

If you are still choosing an entity, the insurance does not change with the structure, but your personal exposure does. Our Nevada LLC guide covers the filing, and our comparison of LLC services in Nevada covers the filing options.

What This Guide Cannot Tell You

This guide explains what Nevada statutes require and where the gaps are. It does not tell you how much coverage your business needs, which exclusions will bite, or whether a particular worker counts as an employee; a licensed insurance agent or broker answers the first two, and the Division of Industrial Relations or an employment attorney answers the third. Statutes change, so confirm the current text before you rely on it.

Sources

Keep exploring: related Nevada guides