b'REACHINGOUTHOW TO WRECK YOUR PERSONAL INJURY CASE: USE SOCIAL MEDIA!N owadays, everyone is using social media.When insurance attorneys are preparing deposi-Its great for updating your own informa- tion or trial questions for you, theyre likely to know tion and checking out someone else just abouteverything about you posted on the Internet or anyone you want to find information about. Itsfound in public records. also true anyone can search for information aboutAfter an injury, the best advice isDo Not YOU. And thats just why its so important to pro- Post on the Internet,especially on tect yourselfespecially if you have a personalsocial media sites, until your case is concluded. injury case. While you probably wont take down your social Dont you think the insurance adjuster is goingmedia sites altogether, if theres no new informa-to Google you, check out your Facebook profile,tion posted after your injury, theres less to be used and follow you on Twitter for anything possible toagainst you.make you look bad, embarrassA personal injury insurance adjusters job is to you or use against you to dimin- pay as little as possible for your injury claim. If you ish the value of your case? provide comments or describe activities on your If youre going to have yoursocial media profile, inconsistent with the severity deposition taken, dont you think the insurance defenseof your claimed injuries, it can be used to attack attorney has checked youyour credibility and devalue your claim. outineverypossibleEven if you have the most stringent privacy way on the Internet, andsettings enabled, the defendants attorney and maybe through an inves- insurance company can access your informa-tigator and even withtion though the civil discovery process, or by videosurveillance?a subpoena.WHO, ME? CONSIDER THESE EXAMPLESIf you injured your back in a carConsider, for example,If your Facebook accident and are claiming you cantthe difference betweenpage mentions your perform heavy lifting, youre con- posting, Dancing lastlove for street racing, stantly in pain and cant engagenight was great! and Iand youve been injured in normal recreational activities, ithad fun watching you guysin an auto accident, wouldnt be a good idea to post adance. If you went skiingwhere you and the video of you catching and holdingwith friends, but sat in theother driver blame each a 100-pound tuna on a fishing triplodge and never actuallyother for speeding and in Mexico. The insurance adjusterskied, make that clear. Ifrunning a red light, on your personal injury claim willyou went bowling, but satdont you think your use this information against you toout the last game becauseonline information will make you look like youre lying or your back injury flared up,lessen the value ofat least exaggerating your injuries.say so! your claim? 08'