Hello Geekzoners

I was rejoicing the refund from ValueBasket only to end up in another unrelated mess for no mistake of mine.

Someone crashed into my rear bumper last Saturday while I was stationary waiting at the lights. They came out of the car to check if my son and I are okay, apologized, tore a piece of their ASB account statement that has their address on it, wrote their first name and phone number and asked me to provide these details to my insurance provider. All good, except that the phone number was not theirs. So I went to their address where their damaged car is parked and left a note with my phone number and asked them to get in touch. They did not call / text me. This made me a bit nervous. Their car is 96 Subaru wagon that is looking neglected both interiors and exteriors. Their wof and rego are current. But this is none of my business and they perhaps don't have to talk to me because I have the required details: rego + name + address which they are obliged to provide as per law.

However I am preparing my case for the worst case - if they happen to be uninsured. My insurer -Vero with who I have a full 3rd party insurance- accepted my claim and confirmed they are happy to write off because as per the panel beater the damage is pretty bad and costs between 5 and 6 grand! in which case Vero will have to write off. I made it clear to Vero that I won't be happy at all to accept the potential write-off because pre-accident valuation is not going to buy me the same car. If I accept the write-off Vero will pay the market price which is not going to get me the same car, 3rd party will get away and I will be the net loser for no mistake of mine because I need to shell more bucks from my pocket to get another car. And I will not only have to lose excess but also become a claimant which will affect my future insurance. So I am against claiming from my insurer.

Most importantly, I don't want to let the 3rd party get away with this. I am expecting the 3rd party (or their insurer) to own the liability and restore my car to its pre-accident state. So my question is how to deal in case if 3rd party is not insured. I am hoping they have to pay whatever the cost of my repair is from their pocket if they are uninsured. But unsure if I am being naive.

Please let me know as this is the first ever crash I am involved in and hence have no experience or knowledge about this deal.  Meanwhile I will have to live with the weird looks I get driving the car with the uneven bumper. Thankfully all the rear lamps are working, at the least.


Thank you.