Most accident victims are unaware of the “do’s and dont’s” of an injury case, and you may be surprised to learn that seemingly harmless actions — like posting about your life on social media or apologizing at the scene of an accident — can have an impact on the success of your lawsuit. Keep reading to find out about common missteps that could jeopardize your accident case and actions you can take to avoid or mitigate them.
In This Article:
- Apologizing at the Scene of an Accident
- Postponing a Legal Consultation After an Accident
- Discussing Your Personal Injury Case
- Creating and Deleting Posts on Social Media
Apologizing at the Scene of an Accident
If something goes awry, many people will reflexively apologize out of politeness, even if it wasn’t their fault. But if you apologize at an accident scene, that can be misconstrued as taking fault or responsibility from a legal perspective. An admission can complicate your case and be used against you in the following ways.
- Delay settlement or lead to trial: Strong facts and straightforward accidents can lead to earlier settlements. However, an admission of fault from you may complicate the case and make it more difficult to prove the other party was at fault, which will impact the timeline of the lawsuit and could require a trial.
- Reduce the value of a case: The defense may offer less money to settle if they think they have a better likelihood of success at trial.
- Threaten your credibility: You may have to answer questions from the defense attorney about why you initially appeared to accept responsibility if the accident was not your fault. If you do go to trial, the jury will assess the honesty and sincerity of your explanation. This may affect whether they find you to be a credible witness.
Of course, accidents are stressful and you may not have been thinking straight or even realized that you had a legal issue on your hands. If you did apologize at the accident scene, you should let your attorney know and avoid repeating the mistake again.
Postponing a Legal Consultation After an Accident
It’s important to promptly consult a personal injury attorney if you think you may want to file a lawsuit after an accident, for the following reasons.
- Find out if you have a case: Different types of accidents need to meet various criteria for a lawsuit to have merit. For example, if you were hurt in a car accident, you must meet the serious injury threshold in order to file a personal injury lawsuit. An attorney will listen to the details of your accident, clarify if you have a case, and advise you on the next steps to take.
- Don’t miss important legal deadlines: You wouldn’t want to lose your opportunity to pursue compensation just because you waited too long to seek legal advice. All injury cases must be filed within their respective statutes of limitations, and the deadlines can vary by practice area. For instance, if you have a municipal lawsuit against the City of New York, you must file a notice of claim within 90 days of your accident, and the lawsuit must be filed within one year and 90 days of your accident.
- Secure evidence about the accident: Experienced attorneys can investigate and help uncover important evidence about the accident, but if too much time has elapsed, some of that evidence could be lost. For instance, Partner Frederick C. Aranki once took over an injury case for a family that was dissatisfied with their previous attorney. On the same day he was hired, he canvassed the area where the accident took place and identified a nearby store with security cameras that may have captured it.
He then spoke to the store manager and asked to review the camera footage. However, it had been recorded over sometime within the previous week and was no longer available as evidence.
Although you might have other urgent matters on your mind in the aftermath of an accident, seeking legal advice as soon as possible from an attorney with strong experience in personal injury matters is the best way to avoid any potential issues.
Discussing Your Personal Injury Case
It’s a good rule of thumb to not discuss the accident or your injuries with individuals whose interests are not aligned with your own, because they may use those statements against you later. This is especially true when it comes to speaking with the defendant’s insurance company. Their job is not to help you, but to reduce the company’s risk of an expensive settlement or verdict.
Some exceptions can include speaking to the police at the accident scene, explaining the accident in order to claim no-fault insurance, or cooperating with your own insurance company under duty of coverage. In these cases you should stick to the plain facts and not editorialize by offering extra details or opinions. When in doubt, consult a lawyer first about who you should speak to and how much information to give them.
Creating and Deleting Posts on Social Media
Many people post about their day-to-day lives on social media, but if you’re the plaintiff in a personal injury lawsuit, experienced attorneys will strongly advise against doing so. Defense firms and insurance companies will often hire someone to surveil your social media presence, especially if the damages for the case are high. You may be surprised at how easily a private investigator can find your social media accounts, or those belonging to your family or friends.
Most jurors understand that people who suffer from medical issues will also try to find joy in their lives when they can, and that one picture doesn’t necessarily take into account the reality of someone’s long-term health struggles. However, it’s still best to avoid posting anything that could be used against you.
The defense may try to weaponize anything they find online, even if it’s taken completely out of context. For example, one of our clients was a delivery truck helper who received multiple fractures and spinal injuries after being hit by a forklift at a supermarket. He also suffered from depression after the accident.
While the case was ongoing, our client was photographed smiling and having fun at a picnic one day with his girlfriend, and it was posted on social media. The defense found this picture. At trial, they showed it to the jury to try to cast doubt on the plaintiff’s pain. Although this was concerning for our case, the jury was ultimately unswayed by the photo, and our client was awarded $3,258,000.
If you decide to be active on social media anyway during an ongoing lawsuit, attorneys may advise you not to delete your posts. If the defense finds out that you’re deleting social media activity, it may look like you’re hiding something and it could endanger your credibility.
Consult a Personal Injury Attorney Today
An experienced personal injury attorney will be able to give you more detailed advice about your specific circumstances. The lawyers at Block O’Toole & Murphy have achieved record-breaking verdicts and settlements in many types of accident cases, including car accidents and construction accidents.
For a free legal consultation, call us at 212-736-5300, or fill out our online contact form. We serve all five boroughs of New York City as well as the entirety of New York State and New Jersey.