Auto Insurance Claims: Hit and run (I caught suspect), w/ no insurance..., uninsured motorist coverage, small claims court

Question
Hello Mr. Hixenbaugh,

I came across your name via google search. Your reputation precedes you.

Here are my questions (from my summary below):

Early this afternoon, my new car (yet to make the 1st payment) was rear ended.  The person left the scene and then the chase ensued, going from highway to street to highway, I finally was able to get the police to respond to my situation.

This individual was driving recklessly (as was I while chasing him... sorry to say).  He was caught driving while on a suspended license, along w/ a few outstanding warrants among other things and was placed under arrest.

The car he was driving (his girlfriends and was not in the vehicle, although her baby was) did not have any insurance.  Since I do have uninsured and underinsured insurance (through StateFarm), how should I proceed here?  Am I going to have to the owner of the vehicle to small claims court in order to collect my deductible?  Will I get any help from my insurance company re: this situation?  Also, will my insurance rates go up (considering, I am now a 3rd party to my own policy via the uninsured claim)?  

Also, since the owner of the vehicle who was not in the car when I was rear ended, is she responsible for the actions of her boyfriend in RE: collecting my deductible if I am forced to pay one?

Thank you for your time and attention and please excuse me for rambling here.

V/r,

-Harold

Answer
Hi Harold,

Thank you for the kind words.  

Since I do not know what state you are in, I will assume that you are in a state that has Uninsured Motorist Coverage for Property Damage.

If this is the case, you will be entitled to be compensated for everything that you could have been compensated for from the other persons policy (if one had existed). Since this is a not at-fault event it will have no affect on your policy or premiums. Generally, Uninsured Motorist coverage does not have a deductible, but in some cases it does. Since the other person was uninsured and the driver had several warrants, I would doubt that you would be able to collect on any judgement obtained in court. If I were you, I would likely not consider any court action for that reason.

You can claim compensation for the following:

1) repairs to the vehicle
2) rental vehicle during repairs
3) damage to any personal items that were damage in the car
4) the diminished value of your vehicle as a result of the damage.

I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh