that was my least favorite job on my People S200...even when I figured out how to do it, it was still a pain. I wouldn't worry much about breaking clips, that plastic seems to be pretty stout. I was more concerned with scratching paint on the adjacent panels from tools or from my turn signals (which had to be unbolted and then i put each one in a sock so it didn't scratch the scoot as it was hanging down).
The biggest a-ha moment was on the 'Frankenstein bolts' on each side. I had to pull out on one cover, very far, to let the other cover also pull out and away.
Attaching a pic....this is where the side bolt goes...you can see how the plastic panels are under this bolt...assume yours may be similar?