Never Post on Social Media After an On the Job Injury

Social media makes it a lot easier for people to stay connected. The Pew Research Center reports that 7 in 10 Americans use social media on a regular basis. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and many other social media applications are popular tools for people to share their lives. If you were just hurt on the job, you may have a lot that you want to say—but you should not post about it on your social media accounts. In this article, our Milwaukee workers’ compensation lawyers explain why you should never post on social media after an on-the-job injury in Wisconsin.

Three Tips for Social Media and Workers’ Comp Claims

Tip #1: What You Post on Social Media Can Be Used Against You

A social media page can feel very personal. You can share what you want when you want. At the same time, anything posted on your social media account is public information. If you are involved in any type of legal case, the other side has the right to review your social media accounts to look for information that they can use against you. People lose legal cases every day due to posting things online that the opposition can use for evidence.

Tip #2: Social Media Posts Can Easily Be Taken Out of Context

You may be wondering why your social media could adversely affect your workers’ compensation claim. The primary reason is that the things you share on your account can easily be taken out of context.

As an example, imagine that you suffered a serious back injury at work last month. You are currently pursuing a workers’ comp claim. The insurance companies decide to review your public Facebook account. When doing so, they see a picture of you smiling while walking in the park.

That could be used to argue that your back injury is “not that bad” and workers’ comp benefits should be cut off much sooner. Of course, that picture is merely a snapshot and does not tell the whole story—but insurers are incentivized to find information they can use against you.

Tip #3: Enhanced Privacy Settings are Not Necessarily Enough

It is a best practice to tighten the privacy setting on your social media account. That being said, even the strongest of privacy settings are not necessarily good enough to protect you. From a legal perspective, your social media account is public information — regardless of the nature of your privacy settings. Your employer or the insurance company could still end up seeing your account. Spare yourself the trouble and avoid posting on social media after an on-the-job injury.

Schedule a Free Consultation With a Wisconsin Workers’ Comp Attorney

At Gillick, Wicht, Gillick & Graf, our Milwaukee workers’ comp lawyers are proud to be a part of the Injured Worker’s Law™ Firm. Call us at 414-257-2667 or contact us online for a no-cost, no-obligation evaluation of your workers’ comp claim. From our Milwaukee office, we represent injured workers throughout the surrounding area, including in West Allis, Oconomowoc, Brookfield, Janesville, Racine, Kenosha, and Sussex.