Social Media Being Used For Insurance Investigations

People cannot resist the impulse to share the details of their lives with millions of strangers on social media sites. As to whether this represents a privacy issue, at this time the courts routinely allow investigators to mine social media sites. The position seems to be that when you're posting your exploits in front of tens of millions of people to freely see, that's not privacy anymore.

Always be careful of what you post to your social media profiles!  These days, more than ever, insurers and law enforcement officials are increasingly monitoring social media posts to check for insurance fraud. The use of social media monitoring has exploded in the insurance industry.  Insurance claims adjusters view social media as a gold mine for their investigations.

Not only do insurance claims adjusters look for proof that your claim isn’t fraudulent, they also might look to see pictures of what your car looked like before the accident.  If you were injured during the accident, adjusters might look at your pictures and status updates to see how the accident has affected your life.  They could also search social media for potential witnesses to the accident.

Whatever situation you’re in, if you find yourself filing an insurance claim after a car accident, it is a best practice to avoid posting about it on social media.  It’s even smarter to avoid accepting “friend requests” from strangers. The extra boost in your friend count is not worth it!

If you are involved in an auto accident, or plan on making any type of insurance claim, for that matter, make sure you comb through your social media profiles with a fine-toothed comb.  You never know who could be watching!

Scot Dickerson, CPC
President