In This Article
When you pay your premiums, you expect your insurer to deal fairly with you. Nevada law agrees: insurers owe policyholders a duty of good faith and fair dealing. When an insurer unreasonably denies, delays, or underpays a valid claim, it may be acting in bad faith — and that opens the door to additional remedies.
What Counts as Bad Faith
Bad faith goes beyond a simple disagreement over value. It can include unreasonably denying a clearly valid claim, failing to investigate properly, ignoring communications, misrepresenting policy terms, or dragging out payment without justification. The conduct must be unreasonable, not merely a good-faith dispute.
Your Rights Under Nevada Law
Nevada recognizes both a common-law duty of good faith and statutory protections governing unfair claims practices. When an insurer breaches these duties, a policyholder may recover not only the benefits owed but additional damages caused by the insurer's misconduct.
Damages Beyond the Policy
A successful bad-faith claim can support recovery of consequential damages, emotional distress, and in egregious cases punitive damages — amounts that can exceed the original policy benefits. This is what gives the good-faith duty real teeth and incentivizes fair claim handling.
Recognizing and Responding to Bad Faith
If your insurer is stonewalling a legitimate claim, document every communication and delay. These records can be powerful evidence. A free review can help you determine whether your insurer's conduct has crossed the line into bad faith.