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Can Posting on Social Media Hurt My Personal Injury Case?

Posting on social media can hurt your personal injury case by providing information that undermines your claim. At Salamati Law, we strongly advise that you hire an experienced attorney to represent you and explain how you can minimize the risk.

Is Social Media Worth It?

Social media has exploded in popularity in recent years and has become an outlet for millions of people to post their triumphs and tribulations. However, it is essential to know that what you post– and even what others post about you– on social media can significantly reduce the value of your claim, so it is best to proceed with an abundance of caution.

How Your Social Media Activity Can Harm Your Claim

In general, the more serious your injuries are, the more money your lawsuit may be worth. Once you file your claim, particularly if you’ve been badly hurt, you should fully expect the defendant to begin monitoring all of your social media activity. Personal injury plaintiffs often slip up and post updates, photos, or videos that immediately call into question the severity of their injuries and undermine their own credibility.

For example, you claim in your slip and fall case that you severely injured your back and are unable to walk. However, you post a video on social media that shows you dancing with friends at a concert. Rest assured that it will be used against you. Or maybe you claim that the psychological trauma you incurred in an animal attack has rendered you housebound and depressed for the past three months. Yet, you regularly “check-in” on social media from locations around town. Once again, you are proving the defendant’s case.

Another common mistake is when personal injury victims post updates about the accident itself or their recovery process. One misplaced word or misunderstood phrase can easily call everything you claim into question.

For example, you may post that you were on your way home from getting drinks with friends when you were involved in a car accident. Your posts may be focused on what happened in the accident and how it has affected you. However, you fail to consider that you may have opened the door for the defendant to claim that you were driving under the influence. Therefore, you are at least partially responsible for the crash, which could reduce the value of your car accident claim

This is What We Recommend

You need to expect that the defendant is monitoring everything you post and everything posted about you. Even if you believe your privacy settings protect you, there are ways for a savvy defendant to gain access. And perhaps complicating the picture, even more, updates, photos, or videos where you are tagged or included can similarly undermine your case when posted by other people.

With that in mind, here is what our attorneys advise you to do while your case is still pending:

  • Ideally, delete all of your accounts so no one can link anything to you, and instruct your friends and family not to post or share anything that includes you.
  • If you insist on keeping your accounts open, then take this time only to read– not post. We suggest that you do nothing more than like others’ posts or share news articles.
  • If you cannot resist the urge to continue your social media activity, take the perspective that every post you make is going straight to the defendant. Make sure you enable every single privacy setting to the fullest. Do not accept any friend requests from people you do not know. Further, do not mention anything about your accident, recovery, the defendant, or your lawsuit. Do not post– or allow to be posted– any photos or videos of yourself that could somehow undermine your claims about the severity of your injuries.

Contact our team of Los Angeles personal injury lawyers today

If you have questions about posting on social media during a personal injury case, call Salamati Law today to arrange a free consultation with a Los Angeles personal injury lawyer.

No Obligation, No Fees Guaranteed, Unless We Win

We are committed to negotiate your case aggressively, strategically and creatively. Personal injury lawsuits are retained on a contingency fee agreement, and plaintiffs will pay no legal fees unless the firm is able to recover damages on your behalf.

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