We live in times when people post every life event on social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to share their feelings and experiences with friends and family. However, if you’re involved in a car accident and plan to sue, you need to be cautious and exercise discretion.
While you may think social media is a harmless and even an entertaining means to keep up with the world, the reality is that it can easily ruin your chances of collecting damages in your accident injury claim.
In fact, it may a good idea to decrease your social media activity or even delete your account until your claim is resolved. This is because the claims process can be complicated and challenging emotionally and financially.
How Your Information Can Be Used Against You
Insurance companies and defense lawyers will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that their client pays as little as possible in compensation. You may be surprised to know that both these parties have the right to demand access to your social media account(s) to gather your details such as timeline conversations, check-ins, pictures, and videos.
Anything you post about on social media platforms can be used against you, bringing your claim under extreme scrutiny. It doesn’t matter whether or not the post is about your accident. For instance, if it is found that you posted on social media minutes before your accident, the defense can argue that distracted driving on your part resulted in the accident.
Similarly, if you share a photo of yourself on a holiday with family after the accident, the defense may argue that your injuries aren’t severe enough to merit the compensation you’re seeking.
In order to avoid these kind of detrimental scenarios, make sure you avoid the following social media mistakes after being in a car accident:
1. Avoid Discussing Your Accident
Being in a car accident can be traumatic and you may be tempted to share related details to inform your friends and family. Social media is commonly used to share positive news rather than woeful stories. Even if your car accident caused you immense pain and suffering, you’d probably post about your recovery and improvements.
However, you need to realize that when you post comments saying you’re recovering speedily or about your post-recovery activities, you’re giving the insurance companies the ammunition they need to minimize the compensation due to you. These companies can cite your posts in the court of law and assert that your injuries aren’t as serious as you claim them to be.
2. Refrain from Posting Photos/Videos of the Accident
In a moment of emotion, you may end up posting pictures of your injuries and damaged vehicle. However, avoid posting anything that can be turned into powerful evidence against you as these images may not show the complete picture. The last thing you want is for these photos/videos to land in the hands of the defense, who will not hesitate in using them to convince the jury of the triviality of your suffering.
It is, therefore, advisable not to post photos or videos online even if they were shot before your injury as they may be taken out of context. People believe what they see, even if they’re presented with limited facts.
3. Don’t Share Details of Your Medical Condition
Abstain from posting about your medical condition, visits to the doctor’s, or the treatments you may be undergoing. Do not disclose the medication or medical equipment you’ve used or are using.
If you are raising money for your treatment, consult a local attorney before doing so. A resident of Illinois, for instance, should discuss the matter with experienced personal injury attorneys Illinois before taking any step in this direction. They will likely advise you to give out minimal details about the accident and injuries as the information may be used against you.
4. Be Careful When Checking into a Location
You may be in the habit of using Facebook’s “Check in” feature to let your friends and family know about where you’re eating lunch or shopping during the weekend. However, if you’ve claimed that your car accident injury has restricted your mobility, your check-ins may result in contradictory evidence. This, in turn, will weaken your claim to a great extent.
5. Never Post Regretful or Apologetic Messages
Until the investigation is complete, facts can be unclear. From the legal perspective, it is always prudent never to post regretful or apologetic messages on social media as these may be perceived as admission of fault and/or apology after causing the accident. Even seemingly harmless statements such as “I destroyed my car” or “I’m sorry,” may imply liability and will lessen the amount of settlement due to you.
6. Insist on Keeping Things Private
Your friends and relatives may want to post pictures of you in family functions and common events and tag you in them. Let them know beforehand that you do not want your photos being posted on social media until your case is resolved.
Avoid accepting any friend requests or “follows” from people you don’t know as this may be a ploy used by the insurance company to trick you.
Tighten your privacy settings and limit access to your posts. Ask your near and dear ones to do so as well. If you wish to be safer, close your account or stay away from social media altogether.
7. Don’t Remove Posts
A good personal injury attorney will advise you to not delete posts on your timeline even if you feel you have made any of the above social media mistakes. The insurance adjuster or defense attorney will probably already have screenshots of your posts. If they discover that you have deleted something, you may be charged with destroying evidence.
Conclusion
Enduring physical and emotional suffering due to being in a car accident caused because of someone else’s negligence can be unnerving. The last thing you need is to unknowingly do something that jettisons your chances of receiving the fair compensation you deserve. Keep the above pointers in mind to save yourself from an undesirable legal outcome in your car accident case.
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