social media impact on personal injury case

How Social Media Activity Can Impact Your Personal Injury Claim

Social media has become an integral part of our lives today. But in some situations, it holds the potential to inflict damage upon us. For instance, you may inadvertently hurt your chances of recovery in a personal injury claim if you say something on Instagram or Facebook that is used by the defense against you.

You may innocently post some pictures or make a few comments that cast a shadow of doubt over your injury claims and the negligence of the other driver. An experienced personal injury attorney in Alabama can advise you on handling social media networking while you are pursuing a personal injury claim.

Social Media Can Damage Your Alabama Personal Injury Claim

These are a few ways social media may impact your personal injury claim:

Contradicting your testimony

It is easy to say something on social media which may end up contradicting your claims in the case. For instance, you may claim for a broken arm injury, but post pictures on social media about the fun you had bowling. The defense is going to challenge the broken arm injury by using those photographs.

There will be doubt in your case even if you state that you used your other arm. You need to be completely honest about the losses and injuries to win a successful claim. You can end up completely ruining your case by posting contradictory social media posts.

Social media check-ins

Check-ins on Foursquare, Facebook, and other sites may show that you are participating in events and activities that contradict your injuries. For instance, you should not check in at your weekly yoga class if you are claiming reduced mobility. Location posts can be used as evidence against your claim.

Show physical capabilities

Photographs never show the entire picture. You may post something seemingly innocent on your social medial channels, which may be used by the defense for denying your claim. The photograph may show what you are still physically capable of doing. Posting pictures of other people is not safe either.

For instance, you may post a photograph of your children on a ski holiday. The defense may try to throw doubt on your claim by asking who took the picture. You may not be able to predict the ways in which your social media post can question the claim.

Comments on posts

Things posted by witnesses on social media can hurt your claim as well. You should ask your friends and family to not post anything about your recovery or the claim. They may make statements regarding the amount of money you expect from the claim. Or they may comment regarding the “quick” recovery you are making. These things can hurt your claim by painting you in a negative light.

Avoid Social Media Mistakes Before and During Your Personal Injury Case

Never forget to consider the people that can access your social media posts. Whether you post on Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, Pinterest, LinkedIn, or Instagram among others, the defendants can easily use your social media posts against you. The defense lawyers will do everything to get their hands on information that may throw doubts on the severity of the injury, the cause of the injury, and your credibility.

These are a few practical ways of ensuring that your social media engagement doesn’t harm your personal injury lawsuit:

  • Check privacy settings on all social media accounts to limit the number of people that can access your profile.
  • Scrutinize any new friend requests you get between an ongoing lawsuit.
  • Don’t reveal any information by commenting on other users’ social media posts.

Don’t Delete Your Social Media Accounts

Another major mistake personal injury victims make is by deleting their social media accounts. In fact, you should never remove or delete any pictures or posts from your social media accounts.

Purging information can be construed as spoilation. This is the act of altering or destroying evidence relevant to ongoing litigation. Spoliation can also be considered a crime in certain cases.

You should consider stopping or limiting the use of social channels when in the middle of a personal injury claim. You should make sure that you refrain from posting anything about your activities or court case if you cannot stop using social media. You can also limit your activities to only close friends.

Social media can affect injury claims in multiple ways. You should work with an attorney that has a deep understanding of this. While it is best that you keep away from social media completely, you may be able to use it by understanding what to keep away from.

Consult with a knowledgeable personal injury lawyer immediately if you think you may have posted something damaging.

Choose a Trusted Alabama Personal Injury Attorney to Maximize Your Compensation

The legal team at Frank M. Wilson is fully aware of the ways in which social media can affect your personal injury claim. We will provide you with the right legal guidance at every step. Our lawyers are prepared to fight hard to get you the financial compensation you are entitled to. To set up your free and confidential consultation, call us at (334) 423-3137 or reach us online.

 

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