Can Social Media Affect Your Personal Injury Lawsuit?

Did you know that insurance companies, attorneys, and their investigators often look up a plaintiff’s social media posts to refute personal injury claims? But not only will they look at your social media posts, they will even search for the posts of your relatives or friends! 

This is because many posts contain valuable information about your whereabouts, your activities, and your health condition. For example, a friend posts a photo of you two on vacation sipping cocktails in Mexico or riding on a jetski, which might make the jury skeptical about your claims of being seriously injured. 

But even the less exciting photos might contain geo-location data or clues on how you behave as a person. Why give the other side all this free ammunition?

For that reason, any experienced California personal injury attorney will tell you to use social media with extreme precaution after a car accident and especially after you have filed a lawsuit against anyone. 

What if you get bombarded with questions about your personal injury case from your own family, friends, co-workers, or other people online and in person? Our attorneys recommend that you politely tell anyone who asks that, you’ll be happy to discuss the details with you just as soon as your case is over. 

Winston Churchill once said, “loose lips sink ships.” While insurance companies know that anything you discuss with your attorney is protected by the attorney-client privilege, they also know that they can force anyone who is not your attorney, including your friends, your family members, and your co-workers, to reveal almost anything you tell them or anything they have seen you post on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, even if you later delete the posts!

Also be wary of new strangers trying to connect and chat with you online. You never know if it’s an investigator trying to get valuable information to use against you in your case. Don’t reveal anything about your injuries or case online. 

The attorney client privilege is there for your protection, make good use of it and discuss all the details and developments relating to your case ONLY with your attorney.

For more information, see our detailed article covering the most important personal injury questions