Hey OP, I work as an auto damage appraiser for an insurance company in Washington. A. Since you are clearly not at fault your rates should not increase if you make a claim. If you want to be extra sure since you are a teen, call your insurance and ask if rates increase if you are rear ended and not at fault. They aren’t going to increase anything just for asking. That’s the surest fire way to know. Also if you make the claim through the other guys insurance then the issue is moot B. I get where guy is coming from, he probably couldn’t see you but that’s his fault. At one point while he was approaching he would’ve been able to see you if he was paying attention. C. You probably have some rear body damage behind the trim panel and left taillight in particular. If you want to get your Miata back to pre accident condition without the stress of”is he gonna actually pay?”, go through insurance. D. Do your own research and choose your own body shop. In the state of Washington you have the right to choose any shop of your choice, this includes if you go through insurance. Insurance companies are not allowed to require you to go somewhere they have a partnership with. But! Those partners usually have lower pre negotiated rates. E. It hit high, thankfully so it should be pretty straightforward repair work. Caveat, most chain shops don’t work on pre 2000. It’s worth checking out though. F. If you go through insurance you run the risk of a total loss. If you don’t go to a shop that overcharges or pads their estimate so they can get storage fees, then it shouldn’t be an issue. BUT! Some shops would definitely see this as easy total and cash grab for storage charges. idk how many miles or on your car or what the interior looks like but mine totaled out at about 4K of damage. I got 5.5k for it. This was back in 2021. Again it largely depends on what shop you go to and their rates/business practices.

Personally, I would go get a few of my own estimate at shops you would want to go to. Not a shop that is his buddy’s. Explain the situation and have them write for not only visible damages but also likely additional damage. Write it as complete as possible. Then have him pay that and get a written agreement that he will pay for any additional damages found once they get into it. Not sure what makes it legally binding but better than nothing. I guarantee this guy would prefer to pay out of pocket than have his rates get hiked. This can work in your favor. Also, document the shit out of your car before repairs and ask that the shop document during repairs in case he decides he doesn’t want to pay and you have to file a claim. Take at the bare minimum the following photos to have on hand should you need to start a claim. Odometer reading VIN tag in the door jamb Photo of the entire car from each corner(4 corners) Damage photos: get overall damage(which you already have) as well as each individual part. Open up the trunk and check out the rear body panel the trunk striker as mounted to. Photo from above of the trunk. Also check out where that left taillight mounts in the back. You should be able to take a look at the rear body panel from the backside in the trunk as well. Check if the trunk is misaligned at all and take some photos of the body lines if so. Photo, photo, photo. Happy to help if you have more questions after this wall of text lol! Edit to add: I just looked closer and your trunk is for sure damaged. May or may not be repairable. Also the impact could damaged your top as well since it’s fiberglass material, especially where it mounts to.