The Impact of Social Media on Personal Injury Claims

Many people use social media as an essential part of their daily lives. Platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and TikTok allow people to share photos, videos, opinions, and comments with their friends, family members, and even a worldwide audience. However, if you were injured in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, it’s important to understand that there can be serious ramifications when it comes to posting about your case on social media. Understanding how social media can affect a personal injury case is crucial to ensure your rights are protected — and you avoid any unintended consequences.

What Role Does Social Media Play in a Personal Injury Case?

Social media can play a vital role in a personal injury claim. In some instances, it can visually demonstrate the extent of your injuries and show how they impact your life. However, it’s crucial to use social media cautiously — often, social media can harm a personal injury case. Anything you post can be used by the defense as evidence against you to influence the amount of compensation you would receive.

Importantly, insurance adjusters and defense attorneys are always looking for anything on social media that may be relevant to your claim. Some may even create fake profiles and try to friend you in an attempt to gain information. Even if you have your profile set to private, your posts and photos might still be viewable. Posts, photos, and even passwords from your accounts may also need to be handed over during the discovery phase of litigation.

How Social Media Can Affect a Personal Injury Case

Photos, comments, check-ins, tags, and other activity on social media can affect your personal injury case and any settlement or jury verdict you would receive. You should not assume that no one is looking at your accounts — throughout the entire personal injury process, the other side may be surveilling you, both in-person and online. Even comments from family and friends can harm your case. Ultimately, making any reference to your accident, injury, or claim for compensation can portray you in a negative light.

Social media can affect a personal injury case in the following ways:

• You may contradict your own testimony — Posting photos of yourself on social media participating in activities that appear to contradict the limitations you stated you have due to your injuries can affect your personal injury case. Even posts that seem harmless can be misconstrued and misinterpreted by the defense. Posts can be taken out of context and used to portray you as being less injured than you claim.
• You can inadvertently affect your credibility — If what you post on your social media profile is inconsistent with your claim, you can harm your credibility. For example, if you claim to have hurt your leg in the accident and post photos of yourself on a skiing vacation or at a yoga class, the defense will argue that you are not as injured as you purport to be.
• Your settlement can be impacted — An insurance company may use anything they find on your social media accounts to justify a lower settlement offer. If they find something that suggests your injuries are not as serious as you argue they are, they might even dispute the validity of your claim entirely.

Despite the risks of how social media can affect a personal injury case, these platforms can sometimes be used to show how your injuries impacted your daily life and livelihood. For instance, if you post about how your injuries have affected your ability to work, go to the gym, spend time with family, or participate in the activities you once enjoyed, this evidence may be used to support a claim for your pain and suffering damages.

How Can You Exercise Caution When Using Social Media During a Personal Injury Case?

There are many different ways you can exercise caution when using social media while your personal injury case is ongoing. It may be best to limit your social media activity, change your account settings to private, or deactivate your account temporarily. If you plan to continue using social media, you should never discuss the details of the accident, your injuries, or your case in general on these platforms. You should also ask friends and family to not post anything about you — whether on your profile or theirs — that could impact your claim.

Although you might think it is a good idea, you should never delete any posts from the past. Once your case has commenced, deleting them may be considered destroying evidence. This could not only harm your credibility, but it can also result in spoliation sanctions. In addition, you should be careful about accepting friend requests from people you do not know while your case is ongoing. It’s not uncommon for insurance adjusters to create fake social media accounts in order to gain access to your information.

It’s best to discuss how social media can affect a personal injury case and the precautions you should take with your attorney. They can best advise you regarding your specific situation and help to ensure your rights are protected.

Contact an Experienced Washington Personal Injury Attorney

Using social media after an accident-related injury can come with certain risks. If you would like to learn more about how social media can affect a personal injury case, it’s critical to consult with an experienced attorney. With locations in Burien and Bellevue, Herron Law Office, PLLC works diligently to help the victims of negligence in Washington recover the maximum compensation to which they are entitled for their injuries.

If you’ve been hurt in an accident caused by the negligence, carelessness, or recklessness of another, we welcome you to contact us for a consultation to discuss your case by calling (425) 600-2580.