good stuff to know about insurance claims + need advice on fixing bike

My VFR was tipped over last week. After many drinks and a few days to calm down I filed an insurance claim. First, I read my entire insurance policy (Progressive) and found some interesting things:

* must file claim within 24 hours of incident or "as soon as possible". I was pretty upset about the damage since I just bought the bike, didn't want to deal with it right away. They didn't complain about this but probably could have made my life difficult.
* must file a police report. I asked the officer to dust for prints and he was happy to do it. He said they can only get prints off metal or painted plastic (i.e., not grips or seats). BUT, unless the culprit has been fingerprinted by law enforcement there won't be a match. They cannot force a suspect to be fingerprinted. And even if there is a match it doesn't prove that he caused the damage, just that he touched the bike sometime since it was last washed or wiped down. So if your bike is ever vandalized avoid touching the metal and painted surfaces and get the police to dust for prints right away, but don't expect miracles.
* damage to riding gear (helmet, jacket, etc) is covered! Can't remember if this was under Collision or Comprehensive coverage. Good to know in case I ever crash it since I have about $1500 in riding gear.

The damage is all cosmetic. 1' scrape on my Corbin Beetle Bags. Minor dents & scrape on tank. I'm trying to figure out what to fix myself and what to have the dealer do. Has anybody replaced their gas tank? What tools and how much time is needed for someone of average (not strong) mechanical skills who is new to the VFR?

The right side Beetle Bag will cost about $520 to get professionally fixed (sanded/repainted). I was going to sell the set anyway, used values seem to range from $600-900. So maybe I'll just sell them for less to someone who wants to a) ignore the scrape or b) fix it themself. The left bag is flawless, right bag is fine except for the 1' scrape. Thoughts?

UPDATE - a new gas tank is about $700! And that is probably for an unpainted one. So if someone has a red 5th gen tank in good condition PM me.

 

My thoughts on insurance (based on experience) when it comes to single bike accidents:
*if you take a ride in an ambulance (even if for precautionary measures) it is considered an injury accident, which in turn is just as bad as totaling out your bike.
*leave the cops out of it. they can give you a ticket even if you were going the speed limit!
*be nice to those you pass on that twisty road! either a) they can be a witness saying you were being aggressive (see above) or b)give you a ride to the nearest fire station (PT Cruisers are fast in the canyons incedently.....)
*If there's one scratch on your bikes frame- 90% of the time it is considered a total loss. if you don't want that on your record and you can afford to fix it without the ins co's help, don't call them. Ebay can resurect a bike pretty quick and on the cheap.
*if you have a "new" bike and they are going to total it out, do your homework on how much it will take to get the bike back together (I got a $10,500 bike for $4,100 dollars after rebuild) and ask to buy it back.

I know that's not everything to know about insurance companies, and that it's not even the same as what is described above, but I felt like sharing my 2 cents......