Modern technology makes our daily lives so much easier. We can attend work or school from the comfort of our home by using a laptop or a desktop computer. We can send e-mails, participate in videoconferences, and pay at the grocery stores with our phones. And of course, we can send and receive messages, track our daily physical activity, and even monitor our heart rate with our smartwatches. As these various tech gadgets have become a staple of everyday life, it has become a common practice for the data collected by our gadgets to be used against us by insurance companies when investigating personal injury claims. Keep reading to learn what top Personal Injury Attorney in Chicago, Brent Eames, says about how a concerning new trend in Illinois personal injury cases.
It is becoming standard practice for defense attorneys in personal injury lawsuits to subpoena data records related to wearable technology such as smartwatches. Many of us wear an Apple, Samsung, or Fitbit watch to track the number of steps we made, minutes exercised, and calories burned on a day-to-day basis. Often times, the watches come preprogrammed with these settings whether we intend to track our physical activity or not. When wearing smartwatches, we rarely consider that data collected by these devices can and likely will be used as evidence in a personal injury case. In particular, if the person sustained an injury and claims not to be able to perform any physically strenuous activities, data from the smartwatch showing that the same person was taking 10,000 steps and running 5 miles per day, for example, will call into question the sincerity of the plaintiff’s complaints regarding their alleged inability to perform activities of daily living.
On the other hand, the data collected by wearable technology can also be used as factual evidence to make the case stronger. For example, the data from the smartwatch can corroborate that prior to sustaining an injury, the wearer of the gadget was very physically active but had to change his or her habits following the accident in question. This sort of scenario would be quite helpful for a claim for damages based upon pain and suffering or loss of a normal life.
Although all factual circumstances are analyzed when making a determination about whether a personal injury claim is compensable, it is important to be mindful that the data collected from one’s wearable technology is likely to be scrutinized as part of the evidence.
The Eames Law Group is an experienced law firm that guides people who have suffered serious personal injuries. They help residents of Illinois gain their lives back after accidents, by managing medical bills and financial setbacks. Brent Eames has been recognized as one of the best personal injury lawyers in Chicago who will help people obtain the appropriate compensation and medical assistance after suffering an injury. For more information, contact us to meet with the Eames Law Group and learn about the legal services they offer.
