Did you know that what you post on your social media can affect your automotive insurance plans in Chicago? In fact, all over the country, insurance agencies and law enforcement regularly check Facebook and Twitter in the event of accidents or insurance claims to uncover more of the truth. Here’s what you need to know:
How Social Media is Used After an Insurance Claim
If a person files an insurance claim to recover the cost of damages to their car, one of the first things an insurance agency can do is check social media postings. They’ll be looking for older pictures of the car, to assess how much damage was actually done, as well as any posts about how the damage occurred, to discover if the damage is truly covered by your policy.
And if you are involved in an accident? The police may be doing the same thing. Law enforcement often checks social media to discover if a person has posted anything revealing about an accident that they didn’t share during the report.
Why This Matters to You
Many of us document our lives on social media without even thinking about it any more. But pause for just a second and consider how an outburst or a funny joke on social media could be taken out of context and used to deny your insurance claim. Whether you are just joking with your friends about driving your car into a lake, or you actually did drive your car into a lake, the insurance agency simply sees your post as an admission that you damaged your car on purpose. Then you’re stuck paying the bill yourself.
Insurance Adjusters Do Have Legal Rights to Search Social Media
Just like the police, insurance adjusters do have the legal right to use the information on your Facebook, Twitter, or other social profiles to make decisions about your automotive insurance plans in Chicago. That includes deciding to raise the cost of your plan if you’ve posted a video of yourself driving recklessly, for example, or denying a claim that appears to fall outside your policy’s coverage area.
These are good things to keep in mind when you get into an accident or have some damage on your car. Be sure you aren’t posting any jokes or exaggerations that could come back to haunt you later. If you want to know more about automotive insurance plans in Chicago, contact us at Here.