Surveillance Ambush: The Impact of Social Media on Personal Injury Claims

In today’s world, social media is a big part of our everyday lives. While sharing photos or posting about your day is usually harmless, claimants must be savvy to what is being posted online after they are involved in an accident. Social media impacts both our personal and work lives, and the considerable amount of personal information people share online can play a big role in personal injury cases. If you or someone you know has suffered injury, the team at Hodge Jones & Allen Solicitors can help you navigate the impact that social media might have on your case.

The secret dangers of social media

We recognise that clients are keen to share their personal and business updates online, but once something is posted, it can be very hard to completely erase it later down the line. Claimants should be aware that your posts may reach more people than you intended, even if you have adjusted your privacy settings. Once something is online, it can be shared and viewed by people who are searching for information about you. These seemingly innocent posts could later become problematic in a personal injury case. There is now a far greater risk that during your claim, the defendants or their legal representatives may instruct enquiry agents to take video footage of you or search your social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X (Twitter), Linkedin, YouTube etc.

Fundamental dishonesty – how social media can affect your personal injury case

Such surveillance tends to be commissioned on a case-by-case basis and varies depending on the injuries the claimant has sustained. Defendants will often utilise surveillance of a claimant if they wish to challenge something that they have read in an official court document, such as a witness statement. Only if something outlandish were to be claimed in your statement i.e. ‘one’s injuries had made them unable to leave their home’, would a defendant likely be prompted to trawl through social media to see if that were truly the case. If such a statement were to be disproved, the claimant would be at risk of the very serious allegation of Fundamental Dishonesty, and a Court is now required to dismiss the whole case if it is satisfied on the balance of probabilities that the claimant has been fundamentally dishonest in the claim (Section 57 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015). Such a finding by the Court will likely result in your compensation award being reduced by the court and/or your claim being dismissed.

The consequences of falling victim to the very serious accusation of Fundamental Dishonestly is only too apparent from recent High Court decisions in Matthew Shaw v Gillian Wilde [2024] EWHC 1660 (KB) and Williams-Henry v Associated British Ports Holdings Ltd [2024] EWHC 806 (KB) where the Claimants forfeited their compensation awards of £1.2 million and £596,704 respectively. It is therefore extremely important that the information you provide to your solicitor as well as third parties, such as medical experts, is consistent with the information you provide for your claim.

Tips for using social media

You should talk to your personal injury lawyer about your social media use early on. Here are some simple tips:-

• DO adjust your privacy settings so that only friends can see your posts.
• DO NOT talk about your case online – it could lead to contradictions.
• DO NOT encourage friends and family to tag you or get involved online.
• DO NOT post photos or videos that could be misinterpreted.
• DO NOT delete or alter any posts after starting your claim, as this could raise doubts.
• DO NOT make statements to the Court, Medical Experts or legal professionals without an honest belief in their truth.

It is recommended that you be extremely cautious when posting on social media during the course of your claim, regardless of whether you believe it is directly related to your accident, injuries and/or claim generally.

Claimants need to be aware that your social media posts can quickly become evidence in a claim against you should they contradict statements you have made during litigation. If you are in doubt regarding what you should and should not post, ask one of our Personal Injury experts here at Hodge Jones & Allen Solicitors for them to guide you in the right direction. Please call 0330 822 3451 or request a callback.