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My friend was recently rear ended at the traffic light. We exchanged contact details with the other driver and got his license plate.

But he pulled a houdini and dissappeared the next day! All attempts to contact him or trace his plates have failed!

My friend tried making a police report but they haven't turned up anything. My friend then tried reporting the accident to the guy's insurer (ASB), and got stonewalled!

What options does he have now? He is just going to have sort it out on his own?

Your friend should contact his own insurer and make a claim, and provide the relevant contact details and license plate. That insurer can then follow up with the other party's insurer and seek compensation. If your friend doesn't have insurance, this will be difficult but he should pursue it with the police.

My friend has tried following up through his own insurer and they too have had no luck tracking down the culprit. And the police have not turned up anything either =(

Its like the guy just disappeared!

Should this ever occur again, what would be the best way to go about it to make sure the guy doesnt pull a disappearing act? Get a copy of his license/passport? Should we have gone straight to the police station and made a report?

Is it even necessary to make a police report in the event of these minor accidents?

thanks!

Your best bet this time (assuming the damage is sufficient to make it an insurance matter) is for your friend to put in a claim with his insurance company, giving them all the information he has. If they can't find the other party, your friend will be up for an excess and may lose his no claims bonus.
If a similar situation happens again, check the registration number on the vehicle matches the label displayed in the windscreen and make sure that the vehicle description matches the vehicle it's fitted to. If there's any discrepancy call the police. If possible (without antagonising anybody) take as many photos of the scene as you can (including the other driver).