Surveillance Investigation - A Claimants Best Friend ?

        Surveillance investigations have long been thought of solely as an
adversarial tool to the claimant.  Some claimant's attorneys would probably
argue that there is absolutely no question that a surveillance investigation
adversely effects a claimant and that they border on invasion of privacy. 
Injured worker support groups would most likely also agree with this position. 
However, the surveillance investigation, when properly performed and then used
by the claims adjuster, significantly benefits the truthful claimant and is not
nearly as invasive as most all of the other aspects of a personal injury claim. 
There are few tools as effective at providing the professional claims handler a
true picture of a claimant's disabilities or lack of thereof.  Every other
professional involved in the evaluation of a claimant bases a great deal of that
evaluation upon what is related to them by the claimant.  Thus, the claimant and
his attorney are in control of a good deal of the information that will be
utilized by these professionals.  Surveillance investigations also use
information provided by the claimant, but the claimant is not aware that he is
doing so and thus does not control the information.  Further, surveillance
investigation does not provide an evaluation of the claimant, it only reports
the activities and others will determine whether the activity engaged in is
within the limits of the reported abilities.  It is this unbiased reporting of a
claimant's activities that causes the surveillance investigation to become a
claimant advocate tool.  There are numerous times that a surveillance
investigation will allay the suspicions of a claims handler as to a claimant's
degree of disability.  Allaying the suspicions against a claimant results in
more claimant oriented claims handling by the claims professional.  It is only
human nature to deal with individuals whom we are suspicious of differently then
those in whom we have complete confidence.  Surveillance investigations that
confirm the claimant's truthfulness and disabilities are a valuable tool to both
the claims handler and the claimant.  Only the surveillance investigation
revealing the claimant is less then truthful concerning their injury and
resulting disability becomes the adversarial tool that most consider it to be. 
At the very heart of a successful surveillance investigation is the requirement
that the claimant be unaware that it is occurring.  For only when conducted
without the claimant's knowledge can a true and accurate reporting of a
claimant's activities be accomplished.  It is this fundamental principle of
surveillance investigations that in fact make it significantly less intrusive
into an individual's privacy then any other part of the personal injury claim. 
The doctor and health care professionals will not only ask deeply personal
although relevant questions but will poke and prod the claimant's body with all
sorts of invasive tests and tools.  Claims handlers and attorneys will openly
question and query into the most intimate of details of the claimants personal
and private life.  The surveillance investigation on the other hand is conducted
quietly and unobtrusively observing and reporting only those activities that are
conducted in view of the public.  It is the mind concept of someone watching our
public activities that makes us feel that our privacy has been invaded by
surveillance investigations.  Everything that is reported in a surveillance
investigation is also seen by the claimants neighbors or other complete
strangers.   Surveillance investigations are always an advocate of the claims
professional, regardless of what they report the claimants capabilities or lack
of abilities to be.  This is also true for the vast majority of claimants.  The
truthful claimant who is confirmed and removed from suspicion by the
surveillance benefits tremendously.  Believe it or not the claimant who has been
caught up in the system and has begun to hedge or be less then truthful
concerning his continuing disability is also helped by the surveillance
investigation that determines this. Since this claimant will soon find that
being a claimant is no longer monetarily beneficial and will be forced into
leaving the personal injury welfare system.