Hurt in a car crash while working in Nevada: can I get workers' comp and also claim against the other driver?

Last updated October 7, 2026.

Yes, in most cases. If another driver caused the crash while you were on the job, Nevada lets you collect workers' compensation and also bring a claim against that driver (NRS 616C.215). The comp insurer then gets a lien on what you recover from the driver, but the current statute caps that lien and makes it share your costs.

This is one of the most common ways a Las Vegas car accident claim gets more complicated. Delivery drivers, sales staff, home health workers, tradespeople driving between jobs and anyone running a work errand can end up with two claims at once: one against the employer's comp insurer, which does not depend on fault, and one against the driver who hit them, which does. Getting the order and the paperwork right protects both.

How do the two claims work after a Las Vegas work crash?

Nevada's workers' comp law is the only remedy you have against your own employer for an injury on the job (NRS 616A.020). It does not protect the stranger who ran the red light. The steps below are the usual path when both claims are in play.

Get medical care and report the crash. Call police from the scene when someone is hurt. The crash report helps both claims, and our guide on what happens after a car accident in Las Vegas covers the first days.
Tell your employer in writing within 7 days. Nevada requires written notice of a work injury to the employer as soon as practicable, but within 7 days after the accident, on the form the state prescribes (NRS 616C.015). Keep your copy; the form is made in duplicate for that reason.
File the comp claim within 90 days. If you saw a doctor or missed work because of the injury, a claim for compensation must be filed with the employer's insurer within 90 days (NRS 616C.020). Your treating doctor or other provider must complete and file the claim form within 3 working days after first treating you (NRS 616C.040), but the 90-day deadline is still yours to watch.
Start the claim against the at-fault driver. You (or your attorney) open a bodily injury claim with the other driver's liability insurer, exactly as you would after any crash.
Notify the comp insurer in writing before suing. Before you file a lawsuit against the other driver, the comp insurer must get written notice (NRS 616C.215(8)).
Resolve the claim against the driver. Most claims settle; some go to court. Injury lawsuits generally must be filed within 2 years of the crash (NRS 11.190).
Repay the comp lien within 15 days. Within 15 days after the settlement or judgment money is actually received, you or your attorney, and the at-fault driver's insurer, must notify the comp insurer, pay what is owed under the statute, and give an itemized statement of how the money was split (NRS 616C.215(9)).

What does each claim pay for?

The two claims are built differently. Workers' comp pays fixed benefits whether or not anyone was at fault. The claim against the other driver depends on proving fault, but it is measured by your actual losses.

Question	Workers' comp	Claim against the at-fault driver
Who pays	Your employer's comp insurer	The other driver's liability insurer, then possibly your own or your employer's UM/UIM coverage
Does fault matter	No; comp is paid because a work accident happened	Yes; Nevada's comparative fault rule applies (NRS 41.141)
Lost income	66 2/3 percent of your average monthly wage during temporary total disability (NRS 616C.475)	Your actual lost income, including the part comp did not pay
Medical care	Authorized care for the work injury (NRS 616C.010)	Reasonable medical costs caused by the crash
Pain and suffering	Not a comp benefit	Can be part of the claim
Main deadline	Notice in 7 days; claim in 90 days (NRS 616C.015, 616C.020)	Lawsuit within 2 years (NRS 11.190)
Repayment	None from comp itself	Comp insurer's lien, capped (NRS 616C.215(7))

The first temporary total disability payment must go out within 14 working days after the insurer receives the first certification that you cannot work (NRS 616C.475(3)). That money often arrives months before any settlement with the other driver, which is why comp matters even when the third-party claim is strong. The general rules on proving lost pay are in our post on claiming lost wages after an auto accident.

How much of my settlement does the comp insurer get back?

The comp insurer is subrogated to your rights and has a lien on the total proceeds you recover from the at-fault driver, whether by settlement or judgment (NRS 616C.215(2), (5)). You cannot collect twice for the same injury. But the current text of NRS 616C.215 (last amended in 2025) limits the lien in three ways.

A one-third ceiling. The insurer recovers the lesser of its lien or one-third of the total amount recovered from the other driver. "Total amount recovered" counts the whole settlement, including attorney's fees and costs (NRS 616C.215(7)(a)).
A share of your costs. Whichever figure applies is then reduced by half of the reasonable costs you paid to pursue the third-party claim. Those costs go to the insurer in a verified, itemized memorandum, and a court can review them if a petition is filed within 30 days after the insurer receives it (NRS 616C.215(7)(b)).
Limits on future offsets. If the insurer offsets future comp because of your recovery, it may do so only against benefits that are not accident benefits (medical care), and it may reduce each payment by no more than one-third until the reductions equal your net recovery (NRS 616C.215(7)(c)).

This is a different animal from the hospital and Medicaid liens many crash victims face. In fact, Nevada's hospital lien statute does not apply to anyone covered by the workers' comp chapters (NRS 108.590), which is explained in whether a Las Vegas hospital can put a lien on your settlement. If Medicaid also paid some bills, its separate repayment rules are covered in what Medicaid must be repaid from a Nevada settlement.

What changes the answer

Who caused the crash. The third-party claim exists only against someone "other than the employer or a person in the same employ" (NRS 616C.215(2)). If a co-worker was driving the other car, or you were the passenger of a co-worker who caused the wreck, comp is generally your remedy for that person's fault (NRS 616A.020). A different driver, a vehicle owner, a repair shop or a parts maker can still be a third party.

Whether you are an employee at all. Comp covers employees. Nevada defines an independent contractor as someone paid for a specified result and controlled only as to the result, not the means (NRS 616A.255). If you drive for an app or a courier service that treats you as a contractor, ask in writing whether you are covered by its comp policy. If you are not, the claim against the at-fault driver and your own auto coverage carry the whole load. The insurance rules for app-based trips are discussed in our post on rideshare accidents and insurance.

Whether the other driver was uninsured or underinsured. If you can collect from your employer's uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, comp is reduced by what you receive and the comp insurer is subrogated to that recovery. It is not subrogated to UM/UIM coverage you bought yourself (NRS 616C.215(3)). Any clause in the employer's UM/UIM policy that cuts your rights because you received comp is void (NRS 616C.215(3)(c)). For how your own policy works after the other insurer pays its limit, see underinsured motorist claims in Nevada.

Your share of fault. Comp does not care whether you were partly to blame. The third-party claim does: your damages are reduced by your percentage, and you recover nothing if your fault is greater than the other side's (NRS 41.141).

A truck or commercial vehicle on either side. If you were hit by a semi, or you drive a commercial truck for a living, federal safety rules may help prove fault and identify more than one responsible company. Start with who can be liable in a Nevada truck accident. Then check whether federal trucking law applies to your crash.

What the jury hears. At a trial against the other driver, the jury learns what comp paid, but the judge tells jurors not to subtract those benefits from the verdict, because the law provides a way for comp to be repaid (NRS 616C.215(11)).

For example: a delivery driver hit on Tropicana Avenue

Imagine a hypothetical driver named Marco who delivers parts for a supply company. While making a delivery, he is broadsided by a driver who runs a red light on Tropicana Avenue. Marco breaks his wrist and misses four months of work.

Marco gives his supervisor written notice the next morning and his doctor starts the comp claim. The comp insurer pays his medical bills and two-thirds of his average monthly wage while he is off. By the time his treatment ends, assume comp has paid a hypothetical $60,000.

Marco's attorney notifies the comp insurer in writing and then files suit against the red-light driver, whose policy is large enough to settle for a hypothetical $120,000. Marco's verified litigation costs are $3,000.

Under the cap, the comp insurer recovers the lesser of its $60,000 lien or one-third of $120,000, which is $40,000. Both figures are reduced by half of Marco's costs ($1,500), so the insurer's share is $38,500, not $60,000. That payment and an itemized statement must reach the insurer within 15 days after the settlement money arrives. All numbers in this example are hypothetical and are used only to show how the statute's math works; real cases turn on their own facts and policy limits.

Common mistakes after a crash on the clock

Skipping the written notice to the employer. A text to a manager is not the state form. Missing the 7-day notice or the 90-day claim can bar comp unless the insurer excuses it for a reason the statute allows (NRS 616C.025).
Assuming comp replaces the injury claim. Comp pays part of your wages and your care. It does not pay the rest of your lost income or pain and suffering, which can only come from the at-fault driver.
Filing suit without telling the comp insurer. The statute requires written notice before the action is started. Skipping it creates a fight you do not need.
Treating the full lien as the payoff number. The lien is capped at one-third of the recovery and reduced by half your costs. Paying the face amount can leave money on the table.
Keeping no record of costs. The cost reduction depends on a verified, itemized memorandum. Receipts for records, filing fees and similar costs matter.
Talking to the other driver's adjuster about your job duties. Statements about why you were driving, and where, can be used to argue about fault or coverage. Our post on accidents in a company vehicle covers other early steps.

What to do this week

If you have not done it, give your employer written notice of the injury on the state form and keep the signed copy.
Ask your doctor's office whether the comp claim form has been filed, and write down the claim number from the comp insurer.
Get the crash report number and the other driver's insurance information, and open a bodily injury claim with that insurer.
Ask your employer in writing whether its vehicle policy carries uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, and request the declarations page if it does.
Start a folder for every cost you pay on the third-party claim, with receipts.
Put the 2-year injury lawsuit deadline on your calendar, counted from the crash date (NRS 11.190). Our guide on what happens after a lawsuit is filed in Clark County explains the court side.

Frequently asked questions

Can I sue my employer for the crash?

Generally no. Workers' comp is the exclusive remedy against your employer for an injury that arises out of and in the course of your work (NRS 616A.020). Your claim for the crash itself runs against the other driver or another outside party.

Do I have to pay workers' comp back if I lose the case against the other driver?

No. Nevada's jury instruction says that if the injured worker does not win a judgment, the worker does not have to repay comp benefits (NRS 616C.215(11)). Repayment comes only out of an actual recovery.

Can the comp insurer sue the other driver itself?

Yes. Once it pays benefits, the comp insurer has its own right of action against the responsible person and is subrogated to your rights (NRS 616C.215(2)). If it recovers more than it paid, the excess goes to you (NRS 616C.215(4)).

Can the comp insurer sell its lien to the other driver's insurance company?

Not unless you, your dependents or your attorney refuse to give the comp insurer information about the action against the third party (NRS 616C.215(10)). Keeping the comp insurer informed avoids that problem.

What if I was commuting to work when I was hit?

Comp covers injuries arising out of and in the course of employment, and whether a particular drive counts is a fact question for your situation. Report the crash to your employer anyway if there is any chance it was work-related, because the notice deadline is short.

Does it matter that I was driving my own car for work?

It can. Your own auto policy, the employer's policy and the at-fault driver's policy may all be in play. The comp insurer is not subrogated to uninsured or underinsured coverage you bought yourself (NRS 616C.215(3)(b)), and the basic limits Nevada requires are explained in what Nevada's 25/50/20 minimum insurance pays.

What if the worker died in the crash?

Dependents may file for comp death benefits within 1 year after the death (NRS 616C.020) and may also bring a claim against the responsible driver (NRS 616C.215(2)). The same lien rules apply to that recovery.

If you were hurt in a crash while working in Las Vegas, attorney Maysoun Fletcher can look at how your comp claim and your claim against the other driver fit together. Call 702-333-6339 for a free consultation.