How Private Investigators May Track You After a Work Injury – And Attempt to Claim You’re Not Injured Enough
It’s true: employers and insurance companies regularly use private investigators to conduct surveillance of your activities after you’ve been hurt at work. The advice below will help you understand how workers comp investigators track injury victims — and what to do to protect yourself.
To speak with a work comp lawyer today, call (844) 345-0952. You can also fill out our free contact form. The call is free and the advice is free, and we can answer all of your legal questions.
Q. Will a Workers’ Comp Investigator Really Follow Me?
A. Most likely. Employers and insurance companies often use private investigators to conduct video surveillance of your activities. It does not matter if your claim is being paid voluntarily or if your workers’ compensation benefits have been denied. Surveillance is done with the hope of obtaining some incriminating evidence that can be used against you.
Q. How Will a Private Investigator Track Me?
A. Private investigators will use video equipment to record your activities. They will call your house under false pretenses to get information. Some private investigators try to speak with your neighbors to see if you are working somewhere else. It is not uncommon to be followed from your home to the grocery store. We have even seen investigators follow clients to our office.
Q. Will Private Investigators Look at My Internet Activity?
A. Yes. Employers and insurance companies will use social media websites like Facebook and Twitter to deny workers compensation benefits. Investigators examine these websites looking for incriminating pictures or comments.
A picture of you sitting on a boat may not seem like a big deal, but it will be argued that it shows you are not disabled. Never post anything on the Internet that can be misinterpreted. Even innocent pictures can and will be taken out of context.
Q. Why Do Insurance Companies Perform These Investigations?
A. Insurance companies will tell you that they perform these investigations to stop fraud and abuse. But in reality, they are just looking for a way to deny your workers’ compensation benefits by claiming you are not as injured as you say you are.
They will take snippets of the video out of context and try to prove in court that your injury is not real.
Q. What Can I Do to Protect Myself From Investigators?
A. You should be cautious at all times when out in public or working around your home. Do not perform any activity beyond the restrictions set by your doctor. You should also avoid any activity that the insurance company can use against you.
Here’s a great example that you are subject to private investigators at all times. We have a client from Madison Heights, Michigan who was paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair from a work accident in the 1980s. He has been receiving workers’ compensation for years and there was no current dispute about benefits. The insurance company hired an investigator to confirm that he was still in a wheelchair — 20 years after the accident.
Have Questions About Work Comp Investigators Following You?
Do not let the insurance company unfairly deny your workers’ compensation benefits. Get help from an experienced work comp lawyer now if you feel that your rights are being abused.
To speak with one of our attorneys today, call us at (844) 345-0952, or fill out our free contact form. We are here to answer all of your legal questions.