Should I Stay On Social Media After A Car Accident?

There are so many factors to consider when bringing a personal injury claim. Your medical treatment, negotiating with insurance companies, and recovery are at the forefront of your mind. Have you considered paying attention to your social media after a car accident? You could post photos of your life while the other driver collects information for their insurance adjuster to use against you. So after a car accident, it’s really important that you stay off of social media. An experienced attorney from Welcenbach Injury Law will tell you the reason why.

Yielding Access To Social Media Accounts

If your case proceeds to a lawsuit, the insurance company and its lawyers will try to force you to hand over all of your social media account information. You might think it’s pretty straightforward to go on there and delete posts. And that’s true. But you may not know that Facebook, Instagram, and all these other companies keep backups of all your data. The private page or not – your social media platforms are for public record. And so what the insurance company or the defense lawyers are going to do, is try to either get account access from you or issue a subpoena, and they’ll be able to get all of those social media posts.

Be careful With Those Social Media Posts!

In most cases, seeing your social media posts isn’t a big deal. But if you’re claiming a severe injury, and they see you on social media out having fun partying, that will be detrimental to your case. Now, most people who are in a crash, even if they have serious injuries, are going to move on with their life. But it’s just an unnecessary element you’re adding to your case. And our advice is just not to go on there. We know that sharing our daily lives and giving our new friends and family members location check-ins have become second nature. Still, videos online of you dancing will contradict a personal injury lawsuit seeking damages for emotional pain.

The Insurance Company Could Be Watching

It will reflect poorly on your case that suddenly, photos are gone from your social media platforms. This could be tantamount to destroying evidence. It’s best not to give them any ammo. Be careful not to accept friend requests from strangers during this time. This person could aim to gather evidence. We recognize that some people have to post photos for their jobs. Social media has become the livelihood of many in this day and age. Our advice? Run the post by us first. We want to ensure that nothing posted online will injure your insurance claim or personal injury claim.

Experienced Personal Injury Attorney

Ignore those friend requests and direct messages for now! They could cost you your car accident claim. An experienced car accident attorney will tell you it is best to go silent entirely until your injury case is completed. Contact Welcenbach Injury Law if you have been in an accident and need compensation. We have the tools to secure your damages while you focus on recovery. Schedule a free consultation today!

Author Bio

Robert J. Welcenbach Robert Welcenbach is an Owner and Partner at Welcenbach Injury Law, a family-owned personal injury law firm in Milwaukee, WI. With more than 24 years of experience practicing law, he seeks justice for clients in a wide range of legal areas, including car accidents, class actions, dog bites, nursing home abuse, and other personal injury matters.

Robert received his Juris Doctor from the Marquette University Law School and is a member of the State Bar of Wisconsin. He has received numerous accolades for his work, including being nominated and selected as a Milwaukee Personal Injury and Class Action Super Lawyer every year since 2008.

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