Should I continue an off-the-table agreement for an at-fault collision?

[LivingBomb48]

Hello all, I'll get straight to the point:

Two days ago I got into a collision which was 100% my fault. The other driver and I agreed it was minor enough not to drag the cops/insurance in and pay it off-the-table.

The following morning, the other driver texts me with the estimation her mechanic made, around $3,000. I instantly transferred the money to her through PayPal. The mechanic apparently told her that they still have to provide an estimate for "internal damages" once they take apart the car - probably tomorrow.

I still have to pay for the damage to my car. My question is - should I drag my car insurance company into this by making a claim? My quandary is that what's to stop the auto mechanic from artificially jacking up the prices? I'm reading that insurance companies are far better at negotiating than the average layman so it might be in my best interest to make a claim and pay just pay the deductibles vs. ~$6,000. That's a lot of money to me.

In situations like these, does your insurance company pay for the damages to both your car AND the other car? Also, would a police report be mandatory in these types of situations? Last thing I want is a police report.

Looking forward to any feedback, thank you for reading.

 

[fed up]

Your coverage depends on whether you have liability only or comp and collision added to your policy.
1) By not informing your carrier of the collision you are not living up to the duty of the policy contract where you are obligated to inform them of a collision and you are at the mercy of any repair shop, as well as physician, to send you bills for repairs to the vehicle or person. You could be paying for old damage which you did not cause, paint you did not scratch, wear and tear items you are not responsible for.
2) If you have collision coverage, repairs to your vehicle would be covered for any amount over your deductible.
3) There is no need for a police report but by admitting responsibility or fault, you may be paying for something which your carrier would have denied. such as: both vehicles backing in a parking lot (each company pays for their insured), any boulevard law in your state if the other driver was not established on the roadway, contributory negligence where you may be responsible for less than 100% of the damage.

Call your carrier and see what they advise. You may have already messed this up to no end

 

[fed up]

What if the police report stated that the other driver was at fault? A police report is not something which goes against your driving record like a traffic ticket. It is a report of the weather conditions, anything which may have contributed to the accident, whether anyone was injured, which direction each of the vehicles was traveling. Most times a police report does not assign fault because the officer is arriving on the scene after the collision but after receiving witness statements an officer can assign blame for the accident.