In New York and throughout the country, people today enjoy using social media. You might have personal and business accounts that enable you to keep in touch with family and friends or market your products and services. Sometimes, social media can act as an obstacle, such as if you have filed a personal injury claim.
Certain types of social media posts, such as those that include images of you or a family member on whose behalf you’ve filed a personal injury claim, can be damaging to your case. It’s important to differentiate between a post or photograph that is benign and one that could ruin your case.
Social media issues that can cause problems in a personal injury claim
Say, for example, you have filed an auto injury lawsuit, and an insurer is trying to deny the claim. If you have listed a back injury or other physical impediments as part of your claim, then post pictures on social media that appear to invalidate your claim, the insurer may use the images to an advantage.
If a person claims to have a back injury that prevents him or her from walking or working, then shares images online of himself or herself dancing, it will raise questions regarding the validity of the claim. For such evidence to be admissible in court, it must be verifiable.
What does it mean to verify images or other evidence from social media?
If an insurer is alleging that you have filed a false personal injury claim, they must be able to verify the evidence. Showing an image of you dancing when you claim to have a back injury, for instance, is not enough to deny your claim. After all, the image of your dancing might not be a recent photo.
The details that are relevant to a connection between an image posted on social media and a personal injury claim must be verified, such as time, date, location and personal identity.
The way one acquires evidence from social media may affect a case
Just because an investigator gains access to your social media posts or posts on someone else’s page that are relevant to your personal injury claim, doesn’t mean it occurred in an ethical or lawful manner. Creating a false identity to gain access to social media content creates legal complications.
If you’re a plaintiff in a New York personal injury claim, the best thing you can do is remove any posts or images from social media sites that may be damaging to your case. It’s also a good idea to make sure you understand the potential legal implications of social media posts in connection with personal injury proceedings.