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Originally Posted by 2TrunkSteve
Insurance claims are a civil matter in California and the Police Report would only be used as support for the Claim Rep's investigation. They do not determine fault as far as the insurer is concerned, but simply help support what happened. If you were involved in an accident with her and it was determined that you were at failt, you would have liability to her regardless of her status (illegal alien, no license or not insured - doesn't matter).
If she were to file a claim, your carrier would investigate both sides. They are supposed to be protecting you from liability and they will take your statement as well as her statement. If the two sides are conflicting they will investigate further (points of impact, witness statements, etc) and make a liability determination.
Taking her to small claims can be difficult. Getting proper service on someone that is here illegally is tough. Assuming you do get service, getting a judgment is usually not difficult. The really hard part is collecting on the judgment. She probably doesn't have assets or a job with significant income. You can't simply lien her personal property or take her income in California, those moves require a judge's order and a second trip to court to get it.
Unfortunately you are probably best off handling the repair and moving on. It's not usually economical to pursue someone who in uninsured....there's a reason they don't have insurance, it's because they don't have money.
Doesn't make it right, but that's usually what it is.
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To the contrary notwithstanding, based on all the reasons you just stated, when a citation is issued under these circumstances, particularly a criminal complaint, it serves to approbate the claim of the victim/insured. I don't know what the law is in California. However, the violations that I previously outlined are generally considered criminal offenses in most states. When insurance companies try to abrogate their responsibilities in these types of cases (and they do), its to the benefit of the claimant when they can demonstrate civil and criminal liability on the part of the other person.