Just because your Facebook privacy settings are “private” does not mean your personal injury case won’t be negatively affected by your posts.  Facebook is the largest social media network online right now. Everyone from kids to seniors uses it every day. Facebook also has thousands of users posting daily content for businesses, products, celebrities, politicians; even deceased scientists all have Facebook pages (Check out Albert Einstein’s Facebook page here. There are almost 1.5 million people following a man on Facebook who has been dead since 1955!).  If you are involved in a personal injury case you need to be extremely careful about what information is available online about you.

You never know who out there may be reading your posts on Facebook or other social media sites. Some insurance companies, defense attorneys, and private investigators scour personal Facebook accounts trying to find information.   Even if your account is set to “private” defense attorneys could subpoena social media information.   Why is this important?

Hypothetical situation: You were involved in a bad car accident and have been  going to the chiropractor 3 times a week for 8 weeks.  Saturday night you go out with some friends to a club and YOUR FRIEND tags pictures of you on Facebook dancing and riding a mechanical bull.  Defense attorney searches and finds these pictures which are dated and proof that you “aren’t that hurt”.   What if you go to California and have pictures of you wake boarding or pictures of you setting up a tent camping.

On the surface they don’t seem bad, but if a defense attorney finds them they will be used against you.

There are certainly ways that you can protect yourself on Facebook using privacy settings, but this is not a flawless answer to cease information from getting out online. A person may have the strictest privacy settings possible on Facebook, but that doesn’t apply to other people who are friends with you. What this means is you can easily set your profile so no one can see your pictures or information unless they are a friend approved by you, but these settings do not extend to other people you know. A friend may post a picture that includes you that will be available for anyone to see.

Don’t believe it – test it!  Log onto Facebook.  Search for a person who you know is NOT your friend.  Click on the list of their friends (left side) and I guarantee you will find at least one person who DOES NOT have a private profile and you can view their pictures!  Now, what if you went camping with that person and your picture was tagged in their album?  You’re caught!

The important concept to remember is that you do not want any information that could harm your personal injury case becoming easily available online. Remove anything that you would not want an insurance company or lawyer to see. Furthermore, be sure not to accept friend requests or respond to emails from people you do not know. You don’t want something you say to come back and hurt you later on.

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The United States is full of useless laws that had relevance in a past era of American history but now seem ridiculous.   Some of these laws that don’t make much sense are still on the books today! Luckily they are not enforced by police officers.

Can you figure out which one of the laws below is actually true? Let us know which one you think is true on Twitter @PhillipsAndLyon. The answer may surprise you…

• Arizona Law: Walking on the left side of the street is illegal after dark.
• Maricopa County Law: It is illegal to water plants during the summer.
• Maricopa County Law: No more than six girls may live in any house.

Check back to find the answer next week.

Protect evidence in a personal injury accident and find witnesses who can help prove your claim to an insurance company.

The first few days following an accident are critical to finding and preserving evidence of what happened- and documenting your injuries. As soon as possible you should take the following steps.

Return to the Scene

If the accident occurred anywhere outside of your home you should return to the scene where the accident happened. Take some time to survey the area and look for any extenuating circumstances which may have contributed to causing the accident. You may find something that you overlooked while disoriented from the accident like a traffic light that isn’t working properly. Also, you may just get lucky and find someone there who saw the accident or has witnessed other similar accidents in the same spot.

Take photographs while you are there. Be sure to take pictures from many different angles including your viewpoint from where the accident happened. This will help keep your memory fresh about the events of the accident as well as document the scene. Furthermore, this will show the insurance company later how prepared you are to get the settlement you deserve. In the event of a vehicle accident make sure and photograph the site during the same time of day and day of the week as when your accident occurred.

Protect Physical Evidence

Who was at fault in an accident is sometimes easily proved by a piece of physical evidence. For example, a broken stair that caused a fall or a dent in a car showing where it was hit. Physical evidence can also prove the extent of damages in an accident; bloodied clothing can showcase physical injuries dramatically. If at all possible try and preserve the actual physical evidence as it was at the accident. If this is impossible, then at least save a picture of the object that can be used as proof to insurance companies later.

Taking Good Photographs

Below are some tips for preserving evidence with photographs

• Regular photos are better than Polaroids. They usually show greater detail and more accurate light conditions
• Take photos from a number of different angles. This will enable you to go through your collection later and pick the best one that highlights what you are trying to show.
• Take the photos as soon as possible so they will most accurately detail the condition of the evidence after the accident.
• To establish the date the photos were taken have a friend document that they watched you take the photos and write a note with the date. Also, getting the film developed immediately will provide you with a time and date from the receipt of your prints.

Locate Witnesses

A witness to an accident is a huge asset when making a case. Witnesses may be able to provide an alternate viewpoint of the accident which will validate your explanation. Also, they may be able to provide additional information which you weren’t aware of that proves the other person at fault. A witness can even be useful in confirming any pain or discomfort you were in as a result of the accident. A witness could possibly have even overheard a statement made by another person involved in the accident indicating that someone else was at fault.

Time is the most important factor when it comes to contacting witnesses. People’s attention spans are short and their memory fleeting. Make sure to contact and confirm information with any witnesses as soon as possible after an accident.

Document Your Injuries

The best way to preserve evidence of a physical injury is to promptly report them to a doctor and also by photographing any visible cuts, marks, bruises, casts, bandages, or other devices. Without early documentation of your injuries proving your claims later can be much more difficult. Injuries heal and look less serious than they were and waiting to receive treatment can lead an insurance company to believe that your injuries were less severe than you are claiming.

For more information on how to proceed after an accident contact us at: (800) 272-LAWS (5297)

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Writing down the details after an accident is more accurate than relying on your memory.

One of the first things you should do after getting into an accident is to start taking notes. Immediately take notes about the specifics of the accident, the damage involved, and anything else you can remember that happened. After the accident it is also important to continually take notes about how the accident has affected your daily life. These details will inevitably become very useful months later when all the facts are put together into a final demand for compensation. Having notes right in front of you is much easier than trying to recall specifics about a traumatic event that happened potentially months in the past.

Get in the habit of taking notes throughout the entire claims process. Details about the event can come up at any time and you want to be prepared to catalog as much information as possible. Anything you think might affect your claim; write it down. Below are some specific topics on which you should take notes.

The Accident

As soon as the initial shock of the accident has cleared start taking notes about the specifics of the accident and how it happened. Start with where you were going, who you were with, the time of day, weather conditions, and what you were doing. Include every detail of what you saw, heard, and felt- especially what happened to your body before, during, and after the accident, for example: any twists, blows, or shocks to your body. Also, remember to include anything you heard from a witness or a person involved in the accident say about the accident.

Your Injuries

In the few days immediately following the accident it is of utmost importance to record any pains or discomfort the injury has caused you. These could be physical problems such as pains and discomfort, or mental trauma like anxiety, loss of sleep, or anything else that comes up as a result of the accident. It is important to write all the symptoms down while they are happening because it will be easier to reference back to your notes than trying to remember exactly how you felt months earlier.

Additionally, writing down all of your symptoms in detail will help a medical professional diagnose you better than you could yourself. A bump on the head might seem trivial to you, but to a doctor it could be the root of a diagnoses that comes up weeks later. Having all of these problems documented with a doctor will make them part of your medical record. A medical record can be used as evidence later and might even be required by the insurance company as proof of your injuries.

Economic or Other Losses

You may be entitled to compensation for economic loss and for family, social, educational, or other losses, as well as for pain and suffering. In order to qualify though you will need good documentation, begin making notes right after the accident about anything that you have had to miss as a result of your injuries: work hours, job opportunities, meetings, classes, events, family or social gatherings, vacation, or anything else that would have benefitted you but were forced to miss because of the accident.

Conversations

Make written notes of the dates, time, and people involved of any conversation you have about the accident. This includes in-person or telephone calls specifically with a witness, adjuster, insurance representative, or medical personnel.

Next Steps

You may glean additional information by returning to the scene of the accident to take pictures or possibly even locate and talk to witnesses.

For more information on how to proceed after an accident contact us at (800) 272-LAWS (5297)

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How to decide who is legally at fault for an accident or personal injury.

Determining who is at fault (also known as “liability”) in a personal injury case can be complicated. It is obvious to say that the person or business at fault should pay for any damages, but before that it must be determined who is legally at fault. Oftentimes, this depends on if someone was careless or “negligent”.

Determining Legal Liability

Most accidents happen as a result of someone being careless. The basic rule of thumb in personal injury lawsuits comes down to this: if one person involved in the accident was less careful than the other than the less careful one must pay some or all of the damages incurred.

Legal liability is almost always decided by this rule of carelessness and by one or more of the following situations:

·         If the injured person was somewhere they were not supposed to be the person who caused the accident may not be deemed liable because they were not expected to be careful towards the injured person.

·         If the injured person was also careless the compensation may be lessened since both parties were partially responsible for the accident. This is known as comparative negligence.

·         If a negligent person causes an accident while under the employ of someone else the employer may also be held legally responsible for the accident.

·         If an accident is caused on property deemed to be dangerous because it is poorly built or not properly maintained the owner of the property can be held responsible regardless if he or she actually created the unsafe condition.

·         If an accident is caused by a defective product the manufacturer and seller can both be liable even if the person injured isn’t sure exactly which one is responsible for the defective product or how the defect happened.

When More Than One Person Is At Fault

In most states when there is more than one party at fault, for example a car wreck where multiple parties are deemed to be responsible, any one of the persons can be held responsible for compensating you fully. It is left up the responsible parties to determine whether one should reimburse the other.

This rule can be beneficial because you could choose to hold an insured driver responsible, instead of an uninsured one, and make your claim against them for the full amount. This option will also make it easier if there are multiple insured drivers because you will only have to settle your claim with one of the insurance companies.

How Your Own Carelessness Affects Your Claim

In a case where you are deemed one of many careless parties in an accident, in most states, you can still get at least partial compensation from other parties who were also at fault. The amount is determined by comparing both sides carelessness and figuring out a percentage of liability. This percentage of liability results in the percent of damages to be paid. This rule is referred to as comparative negligence.

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