Homeowners insurance in Nevada

The home insurance market in Nevada

Nevadans paid $1.15 billion in homeowners premiums in 2025, according to NAIC market share data. These are the 10 largest insurance groups by 2025 direct premiums written:

No single company dominates: State Farm writes under a fifth of the market and the top five hold about 59%. The state is really two markets: the Las Vegas valley in the desert south, and the Reno, Carson City and Lake Tahoe side of the state, where neighborhoods climb into brush and timber on the Sierra front. Most of the market stress sits in the north.

What drives home insurance costs in Nevada

Nevada is one of the cheapest states to insure a home. The NAIC put its average HO-3 premium at $1,013 for 2023, against a countrywide $1,737; by our ranking of the NAIC table, only Wisconsin and Oregon were lower.

Wildfire is the exception to that story. In June 2024 the Nevada Division of Insurance held a town hall in Incline Village because, in its words, wildfire activity across the West had led to higher rates and to insurers' reluctance to write policies in areas including the Tahoe Basin. The Nevada Independent reported that wildfire was behind 264 homeowner policy cancellations in 2022 and 481 in 2023, while declined applications rose from more than 2,400 to nearly 5,000. Commissioner Ned Gaines told KRNV in July 2026 that when he bought a home earlier that year, 11 carriers declined to write it because of wildfire risk.

According to the Division's Bulletin 26-003 (August 26, 2026), the Hawk, Bug, Fred Mountain, Stallion, Oxley and Sombrero fires had burned more than 150,000 acres in northern Nevada; Governor Joe Lombardo declared an emergency for the Bug and Fred Mountain fires. The Hawk Fire forced evacuations in Washoe County. Flash floods are the other recurring loss: in June 2026 thunderstorms sent flooding and mudslides into nearly 100 homes in Washoe and Storey counties. Nevada is also earthquake country, and USGS recorded a magnitude 6.5 quake in the Monte Cristo Range on May 15, 2020.

Deductibles and coverage rules to know

Nevada has no hurricane or named-storm deductible rules. The rule that matters here is new: since January 1, 2026, NRS 691A.035 (added by AB 376 of 2025) lets an insurer exclude the peril of wildfire from a property policy and sell a policy that covers only wildfire, alone or paired with a policy that excludes it. The statute defines wildfire as an unplanned, uncontrolled fire in combustible vegetation that started outside any home or business, unless the Commissioner approves a different definition. Gaines told the Nevada Independent that an insurer using the carve-out must apply it statewide, and told KRNV in July 2026 that no insurer had yet filed to remove wildfire coverage.

That can change at any renewal. Under NRS 687B.350 an insurer must give written notice at least 30 days before expiration of any coverage or premium change, or renew on the old terms. A fire that starts in your own house is outside that wildfire definition; a brush fire that runs into your neighborhood is inside it. See does homeowners insurance cover wildfire?.

AB 376 also created a flex-rating program. From January 1, 2026, a real property insurer can file a rate increase of up to 3% overall and 3% for any individual policyholder, and it is deemed approved if the Commissioner does not object within 15 days (NRS 686B.073; Bulletin 25-005). It applies only at renewal, no sooner than 45 days after filing. Earthquake damage is excluded from standard Nevada policies and needs an endorsement or separate policy; see earthquake insurance explained.

Flood and other gaps

Homeowners policies exclude flood. FEMA counted 8,907 NFIP policies in force in Nevada as of September 30, 2026, down 323 in a year. Burn scars raise the risk: Bulletin 26-003 warned that rain on the 2026 fire areas could cause flooding in places that are not normally at risk. NFIP policies usually take 30 days to start, but FEMA cuts the wait to one day for flooding that comes off federal land worsened by a wildfire, if you buy by the fire's containment date or within 60 days after. The Hawk Fire burned in the Peavine Peak area of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, Insurance Business reported. See NFIP flood insurance explained.

If you can't find coverage

Nevada has no FAIR plan or other state insurer of last resort. AB 437 of 2025, which would have created one for homeowners turned down by three insurers, died in that session. If admitted carriers decline you, the fallback is usually surplus lines home insurance when standard carriers say no, which usually costs more, can use forms with fewer consumer protections, and is not covered by the Nevada Insurance Guaranty Association, which pays claims only for insolvent insurers licensed in the state (NRS 687A.035).

Before you go there, use the Division's Homeowner Coverage Tool, which lists admitted insurers accepting home applications by ZIP code. If an insurer says no because of wildfire, ask for the exact reason and request an in-person inspection; the Division suggests both. If you get a nonrenewal, start the nonrenewal action plan.

Claims rules and deadlines

Nevada's claim regulations (NAC 686A.665 to 686A.675) give an insurer 20 working days to acknowledge a claim and to begin investigating. It must accept or deny within 30 working days after receiving a properly executed proof of loss, citing the specific policy provision in any denial. If it needs more time, it must explain why and update you every 30 days. An accepted claim must be paid within 30 days, or interest accrues. Undisputed parts of a claim must be paid even while other parts are argued.

Cancellation and renewal notice rules (NRS 687B.320 to 687B.360):

• First 70 days. A new policy can be canceled for any reason, the Division's guide says, often after an inspection. Bulletin 26-002 (July 9, 2026) told insurers to inspect before binding when they can, and not to rely on late inspections in that window without good reason.
• After 70 days. Cancellation is limited to grounds such as nonpayment (10 days' notice), fraud or a material increase in risk (30 days' notice).
• Nonrenewal. At least 30 days' notice before expiration. If the notice does not state the reasons, the insurer must give them within 6 days of your written request.

Nevada allows six years to sue on a written contract (NRS 11.190), but a policy can set a shorter deadline, so check its suit clause. The regulation requires an insurer to warn an unrepresented claimant in writing 60 days before a time limit expires. Filing a complaint does not extend any deadline, the Division says. See deadlines to sue over a home insurance claim.

Discounts and mitigation programs

We found no Nevada grant program for home hardening and no statute requiring a wildfire mitigation discount. The Division points homeowners to Living With Fire for defensible space and home hardening guidance, and its own June 2026 checklist is practical: clear dead vegetation, keep a five-foot buffer free of vegetation around the house, clean roofs and gutters, and cover vents with mesh no larger than one-eighth inch. Mitigation may be what gets you a policy at all in the Tahoe and Reno foothills, so keep photos and receipts for the underwriter. See owning a home in a wildfire area: keeping your coverage.

Where to get help

The Nevada Division of Insurance's Consumer Services Section takes complaints through its online form or by phone at 775-687-0700 (Carson City), 702-486-4009 (Las Vegas) or 888-872-3234 toll-free. Offices: 1818 E. College Pkwy., Suite 103, Carson City, and 3300 W. Sahara Ave., Suite 275, Las Vegas. Insurers generally must answer the Division within 20 business days. In 2025 the section closed 3,719 complaint cases and recovered more than $9.6 million for consumers. See how to file a complaint with your state insurance department. Neighbors California and Arizona face similar wildfire underwriting.