The Nevada Senate approved a bill to raise the minimum liability insurance limits for motor carriers, including freight haulers and transportation companies, from the federally mandated $750,000 to $1.5 mn.
Industry groups opposing the bill argue that the increase lacks sufficient justification and would negatively impact small businesses across the state’s trucking sector.
Current Nevada law allows the Nevada Transportation Authority within the Department of Business and Industry, along with the Department of Motor Vehicles, to require certain motor insurers to file insurance certificates, bonds, or other sureties in amounts deemed “reasonable” to protect public interests. Senate Bill 180 proposes to formalize this requirement at a higher threshold.
The legislation applies to every carrier authorized by the transportation authority, as well as common and contract motor carriers and private carriers hauling intrastate-only freight exceeding 26,000 pounds.
The Nevada Trucking Association argued before lawmakers that, although the bill aims to promote financial responsibility, it would instead burden small businesses within the trucking industry.
They highlighted concerns that the proposed insurance increase would strain operators without adequate evidence of need.
The American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA) warned that increasing the liability limits to $1.5 mn would force carriers to obtain excess or umbrella policies, as most insurers do not provide primary coverage above $1 mn.
Mark Sektnan, APCIA vice president of state government relations for the western region, explained that this requirement would likely necessitate two separate policies.
He added that insurers and reinsurers have become cautious about their exposure to single trucking companies due to a rise in large claims over the past two decades.
In practice, SB 180 would require truckers to get two separate policies to get to $1.5 mn. This could be especially difficult for trucking, where insurers and reinsurers had become careful about how much exposure they would take on for a single trucking company, as the numbers of very large claims grew over the past 20 years.
Mark Sektnan, APCIA vice president, state government relations for the western region
Sektnan also pointed out that federal research shows only 0.06% of crashes exceed the current minimum liability coverage, suggesting that higher limits are unnecessary.
Nevada Trucking Association CEO Paul Enos emphasized that raising insurance requirements would result in higher premiums across the industry, placing additional financial strain on small businesses.
He cautioned that these increases could force companies to either absorb unsustainable costs or exit the market, reducing competition and increasing prices for consumers.
Enos cited a former association member who closed their business after facing a 30% insurance premium hike for 2024 and 2025.
In response, the trucking association recommended that Nevada lawmakers pursue tort reform rather than raising liability limits.
The association noted that Nevada recorded 180,274 civil suits in 2023, a rate significantly higher than comparable states.
Utah, for instance, recorded 81,086 suits, and Nebraska 62,106 during the same period. Enos argued that this litigious environment deters insurers from writing policies in the state.
While the Nevada Trucking Association continues to press for legal reforms, they pointed to Georgia’s recent legislative actions targeting legal system abuses, large verdicts, and third-party litigation funding as examples of alternative solutions.
