When you’ve been seriously injured in an accident, you face a whirlwind of emotions, pain, and stress. You’ve probably never had the kinds of injuries you sustained in the accident before and are struggling to deal with the pain. The trauma of the accident and what you’re experiencing from day to day while trying to recover from your injuries is overwhelming. You deserve all of the support from friends and loved ones that you can get.
So you want to share your traumatic experience on your social media accounts. You may be looking for a village of support during such a difficult time. After all, you’re used to posting about what’s going on in your life, so why would this be any different?
Unfortunately, posting about the accident you were involved in or about the injuries you sustained in the accident could impact your personal injury claim or case. If you have pressing questions about your case, contact Robert Wilson & Associates today. We’re here to help.
Why You Shouldn’t Post on Social Media After an Accident
After you’ve been injured in an accident, you have the right to pursue compensation for your injuries. You have to prove that someone else’s actions caused your injuries. If you post something on your social media accounts about how the accident occurred or about your injuries, you could compromise your case.
When you pursue compensation for your injuries, you’ll either file a personal injury claim, a personal injury lawsuit, or both. When you do, you’ll need to provide evidence that your injuries occurred because of the accident, the extent of your injuries, and that someone else was at fault for the accident. The responsible party, however, will also try to show evidence that they weren’t at fault for your injuries or that you were partially at fault for your own injuries.
This strategy could help reduce the at-fault party’s liability because of Minnesota’s contributory negligence law. Contributory negligence is a doctrine that requires each party’s measure of fault, including the injured party, to be taken into account when deciding matters of compensation in a personal injury claim or lawsuit. If you were partly at fault for your injuries, you’re not barred from being compensated. Your compensation will, however, be reduced by the same percentage as your share of fault.
For example, if you incurred $100,000 in compensable losses for your injuries and you were 40 percent at fault for the accident, your compensation would be reduced by 40 percent. So, you would only be allowed to receive $60,000. Alternatively, if you were responsible for more than 50 percent of the accident, under Minnesota law, you aren’t entitled to be compensated at all. If you have specific questions about your case, contact us today.
Because of the Minnesota contributory negligence law, you have to be careful what you post on social media. If you post details about the accident that could be construed by the at-fault party as proof that you were mostly at fault for the accident, you could seriously compromise your ability to be compensated for your injuries. You may think that you could avoid posting something that would hurt your claim or case, but there are numerous strategies that defense attorneys and insurance companies will employ to use your words against you.
For instance, you could write a social media post letting your friends and loved ones know that you were seriously injured in an accident and may say something to the effect of, “I don’t know how it happened,” A clever insurance company representative or the at-fault party’s attorney could use that statement to claim that your injuries were partly or fully caused by your inattention. If successful, this strategy could significantly reduce your compensation or eliminate your ability to get money for your losses altogether.
The same could happen if you posted a picture of yourself riding a bicycle even though you’ve claimed that you sustained a severe leg injury in the accident. Your post could be brought up to contradict your assertions and question the validity of your claim or case.
It’s best to refrain from posting anything about the accident, your injuries, or the at-fault party on any of your social media accounts.
Let Us Take Care of Your Case
To maximize your ability to obtain the compensation you deserve for your injuries, you need a skilled and experienced personal injury lawyer on your team who cares about your best interests. The Minnesota personal injury lawyers of Robert Wilson & Associates can fight for you to receive justice. Call us today at (612) 334-3444, or reach out to us online to schedule a free consultation.