[vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]There is no doubt with the proliferation of social media insurance companies have now another avenue available to them to investigate claimants for the purpose of trying to recover information that can be used against the injured person. Insurance companies actively search for any photographs or postings that can be relied upon to try and diminish or negate an injured person’s claim.
Seemingly innocent use of social media can prove very prejudicial to an injured person’s claim. It can be used by an insurance company to assert that the injured person is not as injured as they claim and therefore try to diminish the legitimacy of the claim. Alternatively social media can be relied upon by an insurance company in an attempt to attack the credibility of the injured person.
For example if an injured person posts a photo of themselves undertaking an activity which may on the face of it appear to be inconsistent with the injury sustained by the injured person then the insurance company will rely upon this to argue that the injured person is being dishonest or at the very least exaggerating their condition. Even though a photo may be worth 1000 words there can never be a definitive argument mounted that what is shown on social media is a true depiction of the extent of injury or incapacity that a person suffers. Many people have good and bad days and it is perfectly acceptable that on a good day an injured person may undertake more physical activity than on other days. Insurance companies will adopt every forensic or tactical advantage that is available to them to try and defeat or minimise a claim.
Accordingly our advice is that all persons who bring a claim for injury sustained in circumstances where they are entitled to make a claim for compensation should remove all their social media pending finalisation of their matter or alternatively ensure the privacy settings are in place.
For over 40 years Brydens Lawyers has been successfully prosecuting claims on behalf of injured persons to recover compensation to which they are entitled and resist all tactics used by insurers to defeat legitimate claims. For your free no obligation consultation contact Brydens Lawyers on 1800 848 848 or at info@brydens.com.au
For over 40 years now Brydens Lawyers has been operating a ‘No Win – No Fee”, policy which, simply put, provides that if a personal injury or compensation client is unsuccessful in their claim then Brydens Lawyers will not raise a tax invoice for having acted on behalf of the client. That is, if the claim is unsuccessful we do not get paid. More information about how this works can be found on our No Win – No Fee page.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_wp_custommenu title=”Start a claim” nav_menu=”77″ el_id=”test-id” el_class=”test-class”][/vc_column][/vc_row]