Auto Insurance Claims: auto insurance claims, room mate, close ups

Question
My roomate hit my car when he was trying to back out of the drive way and i
took my car to get a quote. The quote i had was 1900 from a perferred shop.  
My roomate didn;t want to go though insurance because he claimed that will
jump his policy 35%.  He asked to give him some time to get things settled.  

By giving him time to settle, am i risking my right to file a claim on his
insurance?

Answer
Hi Shoun,

What you should do is to write up a document detailing what happened, when it happened and who was involved. You should indicate that you have gotten estimates of the damage and the amount and then you should indicate that your room mate admits full responsibility and has asked for time to raise the money. You should set a specific date for him to raise the money or you will present the claim to his insurance company. I would suggest no more than 90 days. You shoud have your room mate sign and date the  document. You should also take several photos of your car. (all four corners and close ups of the damage).

Then if he does not pay, file the claim with his insurance company.

I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh