The other driver may have no insurance

There is a real difference between knowing who the driver is and knowing whether they were insured. Keep those two things separate in your notes.

If you have the driver's name, address and registration, you have the details that let insurers and a qualified provider check the position. Insurance status is something they can look into, using official records, rather than something you need to establish yourself.

A driver who refuses to give details, cannot produce documents, asks to settle privately or becomes difficult may still be insured. People often do not carry paperwork, and some simply react badly to a collision.

Record the behaviour factually and leave the conclusion out. Writing "he would not give me his insurer" is accurate; writing "he had no insurance" is a conclusion you are not in a position to reach.

Prioritise your safety and medical help. In an emergency call 999, do not put yourself in traffic or delay treatment to collect evidence, and follow any instructions from the emergency services. Do not confront a driver who becomes aggressive; report it instead.

Photographs are only worth taking where it is safe to stand, and never by moving a vehicle for the shot. What matters most is keeping every reference number, note and photograph together, however incomplete.

GOV.UK guidance written for drivers says a driver involved in an accident must give their name and address, the vehicle registration and the owner's details if different, and that where those details were not given the accident should be reported to the police within 24 hours. Drivers are also told to notify their own insurer even if they are not claiming.

Those duties are written for drivers. As a passenger, cyclist or pedestrian, do not assume the same duties applied to you. Reporting promptly and keeping the reference number is useful in any case.

Whether a vehicle was insured and who was responsible for the collision are different questions, decided in different ways. One does not answer the other.

Neither is decided here. Liability is assessed by the insurers and the legal provider handling the matter, using the accounts and evidence available. This site does not assess fault, decide eligibility or value anything.

The Motor Insurers' Bureau operates the official routes covering uninsured and untraced drivers. Those schemes have their own criteria, and its guidance sets out who can claim and what is covered. Whether a particular situation qualifies is for the bureau and a qualified adviser, not for this site.

Its guidance also indicates that some lower-value uninsured injury cases in England and Wales may be directed to other routes, so do not assume every uninsured claim follows the same portal.

The Motor Insurers' Bureau says people can start a claim themselves, or appoint an independent solicitor of their own choosing. Its registration page is the direct official route and it is easy to use without any referral service.

Smart Family Ltd is independent of the Motor Insurers' Bureau. It is not connected with it, does not act for it and could not represent you in any scheme claim.