How Social Media Can Harm Your Case
Posting, tweeting, snapping are things many people do daily, and if you’re one of them, you probably document your life on various social media platforms. Social media is fun, user-friendly, and an excellent way to stay connected with family and friends. It does have its pitfalls, and depending on the privacy settings, your entire life may be available online for anyone to see.
If you have been injured in any kind of accident, whether in a car crash, slip and fall accident, or workplace accident, you may be tempted to share what happened to you by posting it on your social media. But please don’t. One careless tweet or snap may harm your personal injury claim, particularly if the other party’s insurer decides to take your case to mediation or trial.
Your Social Media Posts Are Not Really Private
While you may have tried your best to fix your privacy settings, nothing posted online is 100% private. Collecting information and evidence for all parties is a vital part of any personal injury case. Just as your Clearwater personal injury lawyer is collecting evidence to build a solid claim for compensation on your behalf, so too is the other party’s lawyers and insurance claims adjusters.
The other party’s legal team will look at posts and pictures on your social media accounts while gathering evidence against you. They will scour your social media history and monitor your accounts for new posts that they can use to dispute or deny your claim or reduce your settlement amount.
What Exactly Are Lawyers and Insurance Providers Looking For?
Lawyers, insurers, and claims adjusters will need to evaluate your claim to figure out if your injuries are legitimate, if you are credible, and whether your injuries resulted from their client’s negligent, intentional, or reckless actions. Photos and comments on your social media can work against or for you. However, experienced lawyers are experts at turning anything into evidence that will protect their client’s best interests.
They can present as evidence comments and pictures without the proper context to dispute your case. While you may still be injured, you may also have other things going on in your life. But even one innocent picture of you having fun and looking pain-free can be used against you.
This is why our Clearwater personal injury lawyer usually advises our clients to:
- Stop using social media until their claim has been resolved.
- Do not post anything related to their claim - if it isn’t possible to stop posting.
- Do not post photos of the accident, their injuries, and themselves after the accident.
- Tell their family and friends not to post or talk about anything related to their claim.
Seek Legal Advice From a Top Clearwater Personal Injury Lawyer Today
Dealing with an injury claim? Contact Tragos, Sartes & Tragos at 727-441-9030 or online and schedule your free case evaluation with our Clearwater personal injury lawyer. Our lawyer can give you guidelines on social media use and inform you of the legal options most suited to your case to ensure that you receive maximum compensation for your injuries.