Protecting Your Personal Injury Case From Social Media Disasters
If you've filed a personal injury suit, there are many things your attorney will tell you about what you should and should not do along the way. One thing that you and your attorney may overlook is your social media presence. The insurance company is likely to turn to an investigator to evaluate your social media accounts for any indications that you've filed a fraudulent claim. Here's a look at some of the things that you should think about before you sign into social media again before your case is settled.
Don't Start Deleting Posts or Pictures
Long-standing social media accounts often have a lot of posts. Deleting any of them in the process of your personal injury case may raise a red flag with the insurance company. If they've already started research and then discover that you deleted something, they may claim that you manipulated evidence by deleting posts relevant to your case.
Discuss your current social media accounts and activities with your personal injury attorney. He or she can help you determine if there are any pictures or posts that you need to be concerned about. Your attorney can also tell you how best to address them without risking your case.
Don't Post About Your Case
Keep all of your conversations about the case off line. Anything you post on social media, whether it's about the accident, court hearings or even your attorney recommendations, can be used in court.
No matter how tempting it may be, don't rush to your social profiles to tell your friends or family that there's been an accident or to reassure them that you are okay. Those assurances can be used to claim that you aren't as hurt as your case portrays you to be.
Think About How Other Posts Could Be Perceived
Even with your responsibility and vigilance about posts related to the accident, you still don't want to overlook any unrelated or general posts that could be problematic. If you attend a party or other event, pictures posted with you tagged in them could quickly become evidence used by the other party to claim that you must not be hurt, because you were celebrating. Make sure that your friends understand this risk so that they are responsible about any pictures they post with you in them. You can protect against careless posts from your friends by setting your social accounts so that you cannot be tagged without approval.
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