I think 90% chance of apple going for the EU-Specific model just like they did for Digital markets act, 10 chance of screws, 0% chance of actually popping the back cover off with bare hands.
For Samsung, 50% chance EU-Specific models 40% chance screws, 10% chance back cover tool-less removal. (Edit: typo)
As for other smaller manufacturers, probably just 50%/50% either screws or tool-less back cover removal.
We would visit family abroad multiple times a year, and so we had SIM cards for both countries. This meant popping the phone open at least 6 times a year, so it got worn down plenty. It happened very frequently that my phone spilled open when dropped, but I’m happy for you that you didn’t have the same result!