Utilities

NV Energy new service: what a deposit can cost and when you can skip it

NV Energy new service in Nevada usually starts with one question: will the utility ask you for a deposit? It can, but Nevada rules put a ceiling on it, let you pay it in pieces, and bar it in some cases. Know the limits before you apply.

These rules apply to any regulated electric or gas utility, a "utility" under NAC 704.317. Below: how to apply, how credit works, the deposit cap and the cases where no deposit is allowed.

What to do first

1. Apply for the service in your own name. A customer may apply by mail. If you are applying for the first time, or you have not had service from that utility in the past 2 years, the utility may ask you to apply in person, unless that would cause you undue hardship (NAC 704.326).

2. Ask for the location's past energy use. Once you have applied, the utility must give you, or anyone you name in writing, the range of past energy use at that address. It must protect the private information of earlier customers there (NAC 704.326). Use it to guess your monthly bill before you agree to anything.

3. Ask how you can establish credit. A utility may require you to establish credit before it turns service on (NAC 704.327). A deposit is only one of four ways. See the next section.

4. Get any deposit agreement in writing. If you must pay a deposit, you are entitled to a written agreement to pay it in installments (NAC 704.332). The dates must be in writing. Keep your copy.

Four ways to establish credit

You can establish credit if you do any one of these (NAC 704.327):

Pay a cash deposit to secure the bills you will be sent.

Show past service with that utility. You were its customer in the past 2 years and had satisfactory credit with it.

Show timely bills with another utility. You were a customer of another municipal or regulated energy utility in the past 2 years, and paid every bill on time during the 12 months before you asked for service.

Otherwise show credit the utility accepts.

When a utility may not ask for a deposit

A utility may not require a deposit if any one of these is true (NAC 704.329):

You have good credit elsewhere. Satisfactory credit with that utility or any other municipal or regulated energy utility.

You have a guarantor with satisfactory credit.

You get retirement or Social Security benefits. The utility can still ask for a deposit if your service was cut off before, or you made four or more payments after the next monthly bill came, within a 12-month period.

The utility must also give you, on request, a form to ask another utility for your credit history or to verify your employment. It may not make you use a guarantor to start service. When it decides whether to ask for a deposit, it may weigh a full year of steady work with one employer. If you are newly divorced or separated and want service in your own name, it may weigh the payment history on the earlier account. Its own filed rates and rules, called its tariff, can add other factors (NAC 704.329).

What the deposit can be, and when it comes back

Situation	What Nevada rules say	Source
Most new customers	The deposit may not exceed 150 percent of your estimated average monthly bill for each service. Electric and gas are figured separately	NAC 704.328(1)
You are 62 or older and you establish credit with a deposit	The deposit may not exceed half of the amount a younger customer could be asked for	NAC 704.3065, 704.328(2)
Service was cut off and you want it back	The deposit still may not exceed 150 percent of your estimated average monthly bill	NAC 704.328(3)
A second deposit after a cutoff notice	Only if your first deposit was returned or more than half of it was applied to your account. The total held may never pass the cap	NAC 704.330
You paid every bill on time for 12 months in a row	The utility must return your deposit	NAC 704.333
A deposit you cannot pay all at once	You may pay at least one-third up front if the deposit is over $50, then the rest in not more than two equal installments, due 30 and 60 days after the agreement. Interest on the unpaid part follows the utility's tariff	NAC 704.332

"Timely payment" means paying a bill before the date it is past due (NAC 704.316). A utility that wants to require a deposit because of late payments must tell you after your third late payment that a deposit will be required after the fourth (NAC 704.331). Checked on November 13, 2026 against the Nevada Administrative Code, chapter 704, revised 4/13/2026.

What a deposit is, and what it is not

A deposit is a promise of future payment. It is not payment for the power you will use. When you post one, you agree it is a pledge to pay later bills (NAC 704.328(5)). Keep paying every bill as it comes. If you close the account, the utility may apply the deposit to anything you still owe (NAC 704.328(6)).

Read the installment agreement closely. If you miss a deposit payment, your service can be cut off without notice, and the utility can then ask for the whole deposit and anything else you owe before it restores service. The agreement must say so, and the cutoff right must be in boldface type (NAC 704.332).

Moving into a place with an old bill

A utility may not cut off your service because of bills the previous occupant ran up at that address. It also may not cut off residential service over an unpaid bill from a nonresidential account (NAC 704.380). These are limits on a cutoff. They do not change what a utility may ask you for at sign-up, so ask what is on the account before you sign.

Questions to ask before you apply

What is the deposit, in dollars? Ask how it was figured. Compare it with 150 percent of your likely monthly bill.

Do I qualify to skip it? Past service, on-time bills with another utility, a guarantor, or retirement or Social Security benefits can each end the request.

Can I pay in installments? You may. Ask for the dates in writing.

When do I get it back? After 12 months of on-time payments.

Programs and help that apply

Your utility's customer service — ask for the credit and deposit terms in writing.

The Commission that writes these rules — Its Division of Consumer Complaint Resolution is defined in NAC 704.3055. Write down the date and what you were told before you contact it.

211 — if you cannot cover a deposit, ask about help with utility costs.

Good to know

Before you call, write down your move-in date, the address, who will be on the account, and the names of any other power or gas company you paid on time in the past 2 years. If you have Social Security or retirement income, say so at the start of the call. Write down the name of the person you spoke with, the date and any dollar figure you were quoted. Ask for the deposit terms by mail or email so you have them in writing.

For deposit amounts, hours and how to apply, check with your utility directly. The deposit amount and any extra terms are in its tariff. Call 211 if you need help.