Why You Shouldn't Post About Your Injury on Social Media

While the Internet has allowed us to send information from place to place in the blink of an eye, social media networks have enabled us to connect with the world and keep up with friends, family, and more. Many people use social media networks to share their thoughts and experiences, including current events that are happening in their lives, and some even use it as a way to vent their frustrations. If your experiences pertain to an injury you have just suffered, either from a car accident, workplace incident, or any other situation, you might want to think twice before hitting that “share” button.

Evidence to Disprove Your Claim

When you are injured, your insurance company has the right to investigate your injury to make sure it is exactly what you claim and that they have a financial responsibility to cover it. If your injury falls outside of the scope of their coverage, then they don’t have to pay for it. Because these companies are in business to make money, they’ll often look for any possible way to avoid having to pay out on a claim, and that includes looking for reasons to say you are misrepresenting your injury, which justifies their denial of your claim. Sometimes this is legitimate, but plenty of other times these denials are given under false pretenses.

This means you should expect to have your actions scrutinized while you are being investigated by an insurance company. They’ll inspect your medical records, medication and prescription requests, the scene of the accident, and keep close surveillance on you personally. This includes your social media presence. Even if you think your information is safe and shielded behind privacy settings which keep all unaccepted users away, there are always ways for investigators to gain access to your information, and anything you post can and will be used against your claim.

This means that post where you spout off about how frustrated you are that your insurance company won’t accept your claim could wind up coming back to haunt you when their lawyers submit it as “proof” that you are misrepresenting your injury. However, even innocent, normal, well-meaning posts can have detrimental consequences to your injury claim. Say you and your attorney have requested damages for pain and suffering as well as mental anguish caused by a serious injury you have suffered. Investigators may take a look at your social media profile to look for contradicting evidence. This means your posts which show you having fun with your kids, smiling, and talking about being strong may be submitted as evidence that your mental condition is completely fine, regardless of the fact that they’re just a front to show strength and hide what’s actually going on behind the scenes.

Best Practices During an Injury Claim

Many people have become so accustomed to the online environment that they forget just how public of a space it really is. The law says that things said or posted in a public place are not granted a reasonable expectation of privacy, and it has since been expanded to include the online sphere. That means anything you post about your case which the investigating insurance company gets ahold of could be considered evidence against you. In mild cases, it leads to more difficulty having your claim accepted. In worst cases, it leads to a full claim denial, or causes you to lose at a trial.

So what can you do about your social media profiles during an injury case? To be honest, the best practice is to simply shut them down and go off the grid for the time being. If you can get away from social media and take your presence offline, you won’t give investigators the opportunity to glean anything they can use against you from your profiles, no matter how well-meaning or seemingly-innocuous it might be.

However, for some people that’s not an option. If you depend on these networks for communication, your careers, and maintaining your business, or any other needs, your profiles will probably need to not only remain active, but be frequently updated. If this is the case, you and your attorney should go through your profile to find and take down anything that could possibly be misconstrued and used against you, even if it’s totally unrelated. Then, before you hit the “post” button going forward, ask yourself what’s the worst possible way your post could be taken, warped, and used against you. If even then it doesn’t really impact your case, you’re probably fine to post it. If you think it could be harmful in this regard, then you should refrain from putting it out to the public.