Information on the internet on social network sites can come back to bite you when you have an injury claim arising out of an automobile accident. The car insurance companies will do everything they can to pay you as little compensation for what happened to you in the wreck as they can get away with. One technique that we have seen the defense attorneys use against people who were hurt in a collision and filed a lawsuit is to get on the computer and find every entry on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn that they can.
The insurance companies, lawyers and claims agents for the at-fault driver will try to use any information that they find there to be a reason to say that your case is not worth what you think it is. One problem is information that you may post or that is posted about you that may imply that you aren’t telling the truth or should not be believed about the fact that you got hurt in the wreck or that you were hurt as bad as you claim. Are there pictures of you dancing when you were supposed to be on crutches because of a broken ankle? Are there pictures of you helping a friend move boxes, when you had a 10 pound lifting restriction by an orthopedic doctor because of your back injury with a ruptured disc? Essentially, any adverse information that is on these sites provides potential free surveillance that you yourself have given the at-fault party and their insurer. Even if what you post may have an explanation as not being inconsistent with your injury, you, and I as your injury lawyer, don’t want to be back pedaling trying to explain things that should have been kept private or confidential. Remember: whatever you tweet can and will be used against you in a court of law.