KVIG Informative

Homeowners in parts of Las Vegas and Henderson are getting dropped or denied insurance coverage over wildfire risk — in neighborhoods state regulators say aren’t actually at high risk of burning.

Clark County ranked second in Nevada for both homeowners insurance cancellations and nonrenewals and for new application denials tied to wildfire risk, according to a presentation the Nevada Division of Insurance gave state lawmakers on June 17, per the nonprofit Nevada Current.

Statewide, insurers declined 2,400 homeowners insurance applications over wildfire risk in 2022. By 2024, that number had grown to 13,000, according to the Division of Insurance’s data.

Donate

Donate

Insurance Commissioner Ned Gaines told the Legislature’s interim Committee on Commerce and Labor that his office cannot fully explain the spike, and that some of the ZIP codes seeing the steepest increases — including areas within Las Vegas city limits and Henderson’s Paradise area — do not match what regulators consider high wildfire risk. Gaines said he suspects insurers are applying California-style wildfire risk models to Nevada properties that face a very different fire environment.

The confusion arrives as state law is making it easier, not harder, for insurers to walk away from wildfire coverage. Assembly Bill 376, passed by the Legislature in 2025, allows insurers to strip wildfire protection out of standard homeowners policies entirely and sell it separately, starting this year.

Nevada, unlike California, has no FAIR Plan — a state-backed insurer of last resort that guarantees coverage when private insurers won’t provide it. If an insurer drops wildfire coverage from a standard policy and a homeowner can’t find or afford a standalone policy, there is currently no state mechanism to fill the gap.

Donate

Donate

Statewide, total homeowners insurance cancellations and nonrenewals surged to nearly 158,000 in 2023 alone, with wildfire-related denials more than doubling that year, according to the Division of Insurance’s most recent market report.

Gaines’ office says it’s still investigating why entire neighborhoods with no real fire history are getting flagged. Until it has an answer, homeowners can’t do much but read their renewal notices carefully — and hope their ZIP code isn’t the next one regulators can’t explain.