write off

You may remember the other day I mentioned that some idiot had driven straight into the back of us at a red light. Well we have now found out from the insurers that even though the car looked OK with just a cracked and dented rear bumper it turns out that it will probably be a complete write off as the innards of the car are knackered - all the back of the car inside is cracked and buckled with much of the mechanics being damaged too. (Sorry, I know very little about cars so I can't elaborate much more than this.)
So yet again I realise that I have been very lucky as things could have been much worse. And I am glad that the car took the brunt of the impact rather than me or Himself - a flimsier car and it could have been us that were cracked and buckled. Although in a strange way I do feel kind of sorry for the car - in the way that one does occasionally feel sympathy for inanimate objects.
Either that or I am going slowly insane...