Avoiding Social Media After An Accident

While it’s common to want to post on social media after major experiences, whether they be good ones or bad, doing so after an accident is almost never a good idea. It can be tempting to let our friends and family know what happened and to update them on our status, but it’s important to remember that anything posted on a social media platform can end up being used against someone in his or her eventual legal case. Even when a platform has a strict privacy setting, information posted by a user can be used to damage an accident victim’s case.

 Posing on Social Media Can Hurt Your Case 

Protecting your accident claim is critical when attempting to negotiate a settlement or when going to court. One of the best ways to do this is to take a break from using social media as a main form of communication with the outside world. Insurance companies and legal teams often use postings to try and prove that someone wasn’t as injured as he or she claimed. Even though the posts, status updates, and photos may be used out of context in these attempts, they can still be effective, seriously damaging an injured party’s claim, casting doubt on who was at fault for an accident and the severity of an injury. Even a non-accident-related image, like a photo of a claimant from a friend’s birthday party, for instance, could be used as evidence that an accident victim’s injury didn’t actually impact his or her life to the degree claimed.

 Examples of What Not to Post 

There are a lot of different things that, when posted on social media, can hurt a person’s legal claim. We have, however, included a few of the most damaging, such as:

• Photos or videos from the scene of the accident;
• Photos of an accident victim’s injuries;
• Status updates on an accident victim’s recovery or well-being;
• Details about an injured party’s case, including who was involved;
• Pictures or details about a social event that the injured party is attending;
• Tagged photos of photos or videos from family and friends in which an accident victim is pictured; or
• Check-ins or status updates from a particular location.

Even if a social media user thinks that his or her privacy settings are secure, there are ways that information can become public. The only way to ensure that these kinds of posts aren’t unfairly used against an accident victim is to avoid posting at all, at least while a claim is being settled or litigated.

 Call Today for Help with Your Case 

Avoiding social media is a good idea for most accident victims, who could end up accidentally harming their claim by posting photos and status updates. At Anderson & Anderson, our dedicated Tampa personal injury lawyers and experienced support staff can help you avoid these kinds of pitfalls, all while working to strengthen your claim and help you achieve the best possible result. Call us at 813-251-0072 to set up a free consultation with a member of our legal team, or reach out to us via online message.

 Source:

forbes.com/sites/andrewarnold/2018/12/30/heres-how-social-media-can-be-used-against-you-in-court/?sh=49983adb6344