Auto Insurance Claims: van backed into car in parking lot, other driver has no insurance and refuses to pay, claim advice, claim help

Question
My daughter and I were just coming from a gas station within a Walmart parking lot, she was the driver (her car). We had to stop behind a van at a stop sign and were wondering what was taking the driver so long to keep going, there were no other vehicles from either direction. No sooner did I say "what is this guy doing?" did he suddenly throw the van into reverse and hit us before my daughter could grab the shifter to throw her car into reverse. She immediately got out and checked the damage while I checked on the kids in the backseat (2 1/2 yr. and 10 mo.). Thankfully no one was injured, it was a slow enough impact that the airbags didn't even deploy. Unfortunately there was significant damage to my daughters car. The van's trailer hitch had gone through the plastic bumper guard (below the headlight area) and damaged the radiator. Coolant was rapidly leaking out. My daughter phoned the police but the officer said he couldn't do an accident report because the accident was on private property. All he did was write down the information for both drivers and vehicles, verified correctnes and then exchanged the papers. In hindsight, I wish we would have gotten the officer's name or badge number. The other driver has no insurance and refuses the estimate from the body shop. My daughter only has liability insurance so we will end up footing the bill ourselves unless we can get the other driver to agree to pay for the damages he caused. My daughter filled out the state required property damage accident report (we're in TX). At the scene of the accident the other driver apologized and admitted his guilt, saying he didn't see us because his van was loaded so full that he couldn't see out the back. But without an official accident report, we are now concerned that he might change his story and say we rear-ended him if this ends up in court. How would we be able to prove he backed into us when it's our word against his?

Answer
Hello Siggy,
 
How do you know he has no insurance? Just based on his word for it?  Did the office cite him for no insurance?  Did the officer ask him for insurance information?

I am not specifically familiar with TX, but in Florida and other states you can contact the Dept of Insurance and request (usually in writing) verification of insurance for another party.  It takes a few weeks.

As to the official accident report, sometimes private property accidents do not require an official report.  If you completed the required report, that should be sufficient, especially if he did not file anything to dispute your account.

If you can obtain insurance information on him, you can file a claim directly with his carrier.  If not, or if he genuinely does not have insurance, your stuck.

Unfortunately, your daughter has learned a valuable lesson that only with full coverage are we fully protected.