What to do after a car accident in Las Vegas

By InjuryCatch. Not a law firm.
Published and updated . Law and data checked against the linked sources that day.

Nevada law sets the first steps:

  1. Stop and stay (NRS 484E.010). Help anyone hurt (NRS 484E.030). Call 911 in an emergency.
  2. Give your name, address and registration. With no officer there, report an injury crash, or any crash on a public road, to police right away (NRS 484E.030).
  3. No investigating officer? After an injury, or $750 or more in damage, send the DMV an SR-1 within 10 days (NRS 484E.070).
  4. Injury lawsuits generally have a two-year limit (NRS 11.190(4)(e)).

The four-question check

See if a firm takes cases like yours.

About a minute. If it is not a fit, we say so here and nothing goes to a law firm.

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  1. 1 When
  2. 2 Hurt
  3. 3 Insured
  4. 4 Accident
  5. Your number

What happens after you send it.

We read your four answers against what firms can actually take. If it is not a fit, the page says so and no firm gets your answers.

You can go back and change any answer.

Question 1 of 4

  1. When was the accident?

  2. Were you hurt?

    Pain from a crash can show up days later. If you are not sure yet, say so.

  3. Was anyone involved insured?

  4. What kind of accident was it?

  5. Where should the firm call you?

    InjuryCatch is not a law firm or a lawyer referral service. You pay InjuryCatch nothing.

    It costs $0 to check.
On this page
  1. What to do at the scene of a car accident
  2. Do you have to call the police after a car accident in Las Vegas?
  3. If police do not come to your crash in Las Vegas
  4. The report you file yourself: Nevada's SR-1
  5. Is Nevada an at-fault state?
  6. When to call your insurance company
  7. If you were rear-ended or it was not your fault
  8. Your car: repairs and the property claim
  9. What to write down in the first week
  10. How long you have in Nevada
  11. If your crash involved something else
  12. Terms you will hear
  13. Sources

What to do at the scene of a car accident

The rules in NRS chapter 484E apply to every driver on a Nevada road, residents and visitors alike. They also apply in parking lots and garages open to the public.

  • Stop and stay. If anyone is hurt or killed, each driver must stop at or near the scene and stay until the duties below are done. Leaving is a category B felony: 2 to 20 years in prison and a fine of $2,000 to $5,000, counted separately for each person hurt (NRS 484E.010).
  • Trade information. Give your name, address and the registration number of the vehicle you were driving. Show your license if someone involved asks (NRS 484E.030).
  • Help. Give reasonable help to anyone injured. That includes arranging a ride to a doctor or hospital when treatment is clearly needed or the person asks.
  • If nobody is hurt. Drivers still have to stop. If your car is blocking traffic and can be moved safely, move it out of the traffic lanes to a safe spot (NRS 484E.020).
  • If you hit a parked car. Find its owner, or leave a note in plain sight. The note gives your name and address, and those of the owner of the car you were driving (NRS 484E.040). On a road, you also have to tell the police right away (NRS 484E.050).

Before you leave, write down the other driver's name, phone, plate, insurance company and policy number. Take photos of both cars, the street, the lanes and any signals. Ask witnesses for a name and a phone number. If an officer comes, ask for the event or crash number.

Do you have to call the police after a car accident in Las Vegas?

Often, yes. With no officer at the scene, a driver must report the crash right away to the nearest police office or the Nevada Highway Patrol. The duty covers any crash that hurt or killed someone, and any crash on a highway (NRS 484E.030).

In Nevada law, "highway" does not mean only a freeway. It means the full width of any road open to the public for driving, whoever maintains it (NRS 484A.095). So a crash on a neighborhood street counts.

Which agency takes the report depends on where the crash was. Las Vegas Metro (LVMPD) takes reports only inside its jurisdiction. Crashes in Henderson, North Las Vegas and Boulder City go to those cities' police. Freeway crashes go to the Nevada State Police, which runs the Highway Patrol.

The number the officer gives you is how you get the report later. Our guide on how to get a Las Vegas police report for a car accident lists what each agency charges and how long it takes.

If police do not come to your crash in Las Vegas

With no officer at the scene, the report falls to the drivers. A driver must report an injury crash, or any crash on a public road, forthwith to the nearest police office or the Highway Patrol (NRS 484E.030).

LVMPD's Filing a Report page gives its non-emergency number, (702) 828-3111. It lists two places to file a report in person. One is the nearest area command. The other is the Records and Fingerprint Bureau, 400 S. Martin Luther King Blvd., Building C. Filing costs nothing, and you receive an LVMPD event number (LVMPD, Filing a Report).

The same page points crash drivers to one more step. A Nevada crash that was not investigated at the scene needs an SR-1 within 10 days (LVMPD). The SR-1 goes to the DMV under a separate statute, covered next. The police report in NRS 484E.030 is its own duty.

The report you file yourself: Nevada's SR-1

The SR-1 is the driver's own crash report to the Nevada DMV. It is due within 10 days when the crash hurt or killed anyone. It is also due when damage to any one vehicle or piece of property appears to be $750 or more (NRS 484E.070).

It is not needed when a police officer investigated and the officer's report lists each driver's insurance company, policy number and coverage dates (NRS 484E.070(3)).

The DMV form asks for a copy of the insurance in effect on the crash date. It also asks for a repair estimate when damage was $750 or more, and a doctor's statement for each person hurt in your vehicle. It is signed and mailed to the DMV in Carson City (SR-1 form).

Skipping it has a cost. A driver who willfully fails to make a required crash report can lose their driving privilege for up to a year (NRS 484E.080). The SR-1 itself cannot be used as evidence in a civil or criminal trial about the crash (NRS 484E.070(7)).

Is Nevada an at-fault state?

Yes, in the sense that matters after a crash: fault decides whose insurance pays for injuries. Nevada requires every registered vehicle to carry liability insurance "for the payment of tort liabilities" (NRS 485.185).

The Nevada Division of Insurance explains what that coverage does. Liability insurance protects a driver only when they are liable, and pays for injuries to others and damage to their property. It does not pay for the insured driver's own injuries or car (Division of Insurance).

Your own injuries and car are covered by what you bought for yourself: medical payments coverage, uninsured motorist coverage, and collision coverage. Our guide on who pays medical bills after a car accident in Nevada covers the order in which they usually pay.

When to call your insurance company

The rule for telling your own insurer is in your policy. Look for the part that lists your duties after an accident, and follow the timing it gives.

Once an insurer gets notice of a claim, Nevada's claim rules start its clock. It has to acknowledge the claim within 20 working days, unless it pays within that time. It also has to begin investigating within 20 working days (NAC 686A.665 and 686A.670).

The other driver's insurance company may call you too. That adjuster works for the other driver's insurer. Our guide on what happens when the other driver's insurance adjuster calls explains what an adjuster may ask for. It also covers what Nevada law says insurers may not do.

If you were rear-ended or it was not your fault

The at-fault driver's bodily injury liability coverage pays for injuries that driver is legally responsible for, up to the policy limits. Nevada's minimum is $25,000 for one person and $50,000 for two or more people in one crash (NRS 485.185).

Fault is not always all or nothing. Under NRS 41.141, a person who was partly at fault can still recover if their share was not greater than the other side's. At trial, a jury finds the total damages and each party's percentage of fault, and the recovery is worked out from those findings (NRS 41.141(2)(b)).

Evidence bears on fault: the police report, photos of where each car was hit, the scene, and what witnesses saw. A rear-end crash leaves marks on the back of one car and the front of the other, so photos of both bumpers help.

Mayo Clinic calls a rear-end car crash the most common risk factor for whiplash (Mayo Clinic). Our guide to neck pain after a car accident in Las Vegas covers when symptoms start and what a doctor may ask.

Your car: repairs and the property claim

Damage to your car is a separate claim from any injury. Nevada's minimum property damage liability coverage is $20,000 for one crash (NRS 485.185). That claim can go to the at-fault driver's insurer.

Your own collision coverage, if you bought it, is the other route. The Division of Insurance says collision pays for damage to your car regardless of who is at fault, after your deductible (Division of Insurance).

For the SR-1, the repair estimate or total-loss statement has to come from a repair garage, an insurance adjuster or a licensed appraiser (NRS 484E.070).

If the car is a total loss, Nevada's regulation gives the insurer two ways to settle. It can offer a comparable replacement car with taxes and fees paid. Or it can pay cash based on the cost of a comparable car, including taxes and fees, less any deductible (NAC 686A.680).

Nevada generally allows three years to file a lawsuit over damage to personal property, such as a car (NRS 11.190(3)(c)).

What to write down in the first week

  1. The agency, the officer's name and the event or crash number.
  2. The other driver's insurer and the claim number they give you.
  3. Every doctor visit, with the date and the bill.
  4. Days of work you missed.
  5. Where it hurts and the day you first noticed it.
  6. Every call with an insurance company: the date, the person's name and what was said.

If you are hurt, see a doctor. Mayo Clinic says a whiplash injury may not cause symptoms right away. It also says to be ready to describe in detail the event that may have caused your symptoms (Mayo Clinic).

Keep the crash papers in one place: the report number, claim numbers, bills and letters.

How long you have in Nevada

Nevada generally gives two years to file a lawsuit for an injury caused by someone else's wrongful act or neglect. For damage to personal property, it is three years (NRS 11.190(4)(e) and (3)(c)).

Claims against a city, Clark County or the RTC follow extra rules. An award against them is capped at $200,000 per claimant, with no punitive damages (NRS 41.035; the RTC counts as a political subdivision under NRS 41.0305). A firm confirms which deadline applies to a specific case. Our guide on whether you need a lawyer after a car accident in Nevada covers when a lawyer may come in.

If your crash involved something else

Terms you will hear

SR-1
The crash report a driver sends to the Nevada DMV when police did not investigate (NRS 484E.070).
Highway
In Nevada traffic law, any road open to the public for driving, not only a freeway (NRS 484A.095).
Event number
The number LVMPD gives an incident. You need it to request the report.
Adjuster
The person at an insurance company who handles a claim.
Comparative negligence
Nevada's rule for splitting fault between the people in a crash (NRS 41.141).
Total loss
A car the insurer decides to pay for rather than repair.
Statute of limitations
The deadline to file a lawsuit.

Sources

Law and data on this page were checked against the linked sources. Each line shows when it was last checked. Statutes, regulations and court rules were read at leg.state.nv.us.

  1. NRS 484E.010 (Duty to stop at an injury crash). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  2. NRS 484E.030 (Duty to give information and render aid). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  3. NRS 484E.070 (Driver's crash report to the DMV). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  4. NRS 11.190 (Periods of limitation). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  5. NRS 484E.020 (Duty to stop at a damage-only crash). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  6. NRS 484E.040 (Duty after hitting an unattended vehicle). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  7. NRS 484E.050 (Notice to police after hitting an unattended vehicle). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  8. NRS 484A.095 (Highway defined). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  9. NRS 484E.080 (Failure to report a crash). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  10. NRS 485.185 (Minimum auto insurance). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  11. NAC 686A.665 (Acknowledging a claim). Nevada Division of Insurance regulations (Nevada Administrative Code), NAC as posted by the Legislative Counsel Bureau. Checked September 18, 2026.
  12. NAC 686A.670 (Investigating a claim). Nevada Division of Insurance regulations (Nevada Administrative Code), NAC as posted by the Legislative Counsel Bureau. Checked September 18, 2026.
  13. NRS 41.141 (Comparative negligence). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  14. NAC 686A.680 (Auto total loss settlements). Nevada Division of Insurance regulations (Nevada Administrative Code), NAC as posted by the Legislative Counsel Bureau. Checked September 18, 2026.
  15. NRS 41.035 (Limit on awards against government). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  16. NRS 41.0305 (Political subdivision defined). Nevada Legislature, NRS as revised through the 2025 session. Checked September 18, 2026.
  17. Filing a Report. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, page as read. Checked September 18, 2026.
  18. SR-1 Report of Traffic Crash (form). Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles, form as posted. Checked September 18, 2026.
  19. Automobile Insurance. Nevada Division of Insurance, page as read. Checked September 18, 2026.
  20. Whiplash: Symptoms and causes. Mayo Clinic Staff, page dated February 17, 2024. Checked September 18, 2026.
  21. Whiplash: Diagnosis and treatment. Mayo Clinic Staff, page dated February 17, 2024. Checked September 18, 2026.