When the insurance company's surveillance catches you
- posted: May 18, 2015
When the insurance company's surveillance catches you, it only shows part of the story.
The scenario is that an injured person has a legal claim based on the injury, whether it's a negligence based personal injury claim or a workers' compensation claim.
Then we learn about some insurance company surveillance that shows the injured person playing a sport, doing yard work, carrying heavy groceries or engaging in any other physical activity.
Then, unfortunately, most people are quick to jump to a conclusion that if the injured person did one of those things, then clearly the injured person is full of you know what.
This is an unfair conclusion.
The insurance company's surveillance does not show the pain that the injured person endures while performing the activity or later on that day, that evening or the next day. The surveillance does not show the person resting in bed earlier than normal, or bedridden the next day or taking lots of medication to deal with the symptoms. The surveillance does not show the injured person acting extra grouchy toward loved ones due to the nasty symptoms being experienced. The surveillance simply does not show the serious pain and symptoms experienced as a result of engaging in the activity. In other words, the surveillance does not show any of the negative effects on the injured person's life over the rest of the day or the next few days as a result of engaging in the physical activity caught on camera.
So, if the symptoms are real and will really be very bad from the activity, why does the injured person actually do it? Sometimes it's necessity and we do something that will make us suffer simply because we have to. Other times, we choose to do it knowing we'll suffer, but we think it should be done anyway, such as playing with your son or daughter.
Please just remember that when you hear about surveillance "catching someone" it is not always so clear cut because the surveillance only shows that moment, or that few minutes, and it does not show the impact which follows. Let's not be misled by a few brief moments without the context of what happens after those moments. Just some food for thought.
