What Happens If Someone Lies About Injuries in a Car Accident in Indiana?

Apr 13

Key Takeaways

  • Fabricating or exaggerating injuries after a car accident differs legally from filing a legitimate injury claim.
  • Indiana law treats false insurance statements as fraud, which carries civil and possible criminal consequences.
  • Indiana’s comparative fault rule can bar recovery when a false account shifts blame onto the victim.
  • Insurers investigate suspicious claims through medical exams, record reviews, and surveillance.
  • Documenting the scene, collecting witnesses, and reporting accurately protects a victim’s claim from the start.

A car accident claim in Indiana can become significantly more complicated when the other driver misrepresents the injuries they sustained. Questions around what happens if someone lies about injuries in a car accident affect fault determination, insurer behavior, and the compensation a legitimate victim can recover. At Blackburn Romey, we work with Indiana accident victims facing exactly this situation, and understanding how the law addresses false injury allegations makes a real difference in how a case unfolds.

When another driver misrepresents what happened at a crash scene in Indiana, the first steps matter: contacting law enforcement, photographing the scene, and securing witness accounts can all counter a dishonest account. Because Indiana operates under a fault-based insurance system, evidence carries the real weight in disproving fabricated claims and protecting a victim’s right to compensation, especially in complex situations like who is liable for a car accident in a construction zone in Indiana.

What Happens If Someone Lies About Injuries in a Car Accident in Indiana?

False Injury Claims After a Car Accident

A genuine injury claim reflects documented medical treatment, consistent symptoms, and care tied directly to the collision. A fraudulent or exaggerated allegation, by contrast, involves consciously misrepresenting the severity, nature, or existence of physical harm to obtain money from an insurer or in civil court. Understanding what happens if someone lies about injuries in a car accident helps victims and their attorneys respond with the right strategy from the start.

Common Reasons a Person May Exaggerate or Fabricate Injuries

Several motivations push some drivers toward dishonest injury reporting after a car accident, such as:

  • Financial pressure: Medical bills and lost wages create real hardship, leading some claimants to inflate damages beyond what the collision actually caused.
  • Avoiding fault: A driver who contributed to the crash may fabricate injuries to shift blame or complicate the liability analysis.
  • Settlement leverage: Overstating harm can pressure adjusters to settle quickly before inconsistencies surface in an investigation.

Legal Consequences of Lying About Car Accident Injuries

Lying about injuries in a car accident can result in civil liability, criminal exposure, and the outright loss of a claim. Submitting false information to obtain an insurance payment constitutes fraud under Indiana law, carrying both civil penalties and possible criminal charges. 

Providing a sworn false statement during litigation may also expose a claimant to perjury consequences. A claimant found to have fabricated injury allegations risks dismissal of the entire claim and may face a civil counterclaim if the dishonest conduct caused measurable financial harm to the opposing party.

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We know you have many options when selecting a personal injury attorney, but many people rely on our firm to represent their rights.

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Our team has combined decades of experience handling all types of injury cases, both with insurance companies and in civil court. We bring all that we know about injury law to the table in each and every case.

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How False Injury Allegations Can Affect Your Claim

When another driver presents dishonest allegations after a car accident, insurers often slow their investigation, dispute liability broadly, or reduce settlement offers while sorting through conflicting accounts, creating real financial strain for a legitimate victim. 

 

Worth noting, Indiana’s comparative fault framework under Indiana Code § 34-51-2-6 bars recovery if a claimant’s fault exceeds the combined fault of all other responsible parties, so a fabricated account that shifts blame can directly wipe out a victim’s compensation.

Insurance Investigations and Disputed Liability

Insurers rarely accept injury claims at face value when reported harm conflicts with the documented facts of a collision. Adjusters cross-reference medical records against crash mechanics, review prior claims history, and evaluate whether the alleged injuries align with the force involved. Independent medical examinations, conducted by a physician the insurer selects, may check against exaggerated harm. 

Surveillance may also be authorized when ongoing disability claims appear inconsistent with a claimant’s observed activity. That inconsistency gives adjusters a factual basis to challenge what happens if someone lies about injuries in a car accident once the full record comes together.

Evidence Used to Challenge Fraudulent Injury Claims

Building a counter-narrative against dishonest injury allegations requires organized, contemporaneous evidence, and Indiana’s fault-based system places that burden squarely on the parties involved. 

Photographs from the scene document vehicle positions, impact points, and road conditions in a way no later reconstruction can fully replicate. Witness statements gathered before memories fade carry comparable weight, particularly from individuals with no relationship to either party.

Medical Records, Surveillance, and Expert Review

Medical records establish a documented treatment timeline, and gaps, inconsistencies, or pre-existing conditions can all surface through careful review. Surveillance footage from traffic cameras, business security systems, or dashcams can contradict an injury narrative when a claimant’s activity on film conflicts with reported limitations. 

Independent medical experts then provide professional scrutiny, offering objective opinions on whether the claimed harm aligns with the collision’s severity and the available clinical evidence.

Contact a Car Accident Lawyer Near You

Steps to Protect Yourself If Someone Lies About Injuries

Responding promptly gives a legitimate victim the strongest possible foundation when false injury allegations surface. According to Indiana Code § 9-26-1-1.1, operators involved in a crash have a legal duty to stop and remain at the scene, a baseline obligation whose compliance often becomes relevant in disputed-fault cases. Beyond that, these actions protect your position:

  1. Request a responding officer: A police report creates an official record that is difficult for a dishonest driver to contradict later.
  2. Exchange information and collect witnesses: Share your name, address, vehicle details, and license as required, and gather independent witness names and contact information.
  3. Photograph the scene: Capture vehicle positions, impact points, road conditions, and any visible injuries before the scene changes.
  4. Report to your own insurer honestly: Thorough, accurate reporting from the start prevents gaps in your account from being used against you.
  5. Preserve all communications: Save every message, letter, or voicemail received from the other driver or their insurer from day one.

Taken together, these steps build the kind of documented record that gives a legitimate claim the foundation it needs when disputed allegations surface later.

Protecting Your Rights With Guidance From Blackburn Romey

When addressing what happens if someone lies about injuries in a car accident, both legal precision and a clear understanding of Indiana’s fault-based system shape how a disputed claim gets resolved. 

Our team at Blackburn Romey stands up for accident victims whose claims have been complicated by dishonest injury allegations, helping build the evidentiary record and pushing back against insurer tactics that treat a legitimate claim as negotiable. Contact us today at 833.FOR HELP to schedule a free consultation. We are ready to evaluate your situation at no cost to you.

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Tom Blackburn

Blackburn Romey founding partner Tom Blackburn graduated with honors receiving a degree from Indiana University at the Robert H. McKinney School of Law. Initiating his legal career in 1977, he has been active in practicing law and currently serves as a member of the Indiana State Bar Association on the Ethics and Advertising Committees, the American Bar Association, the American Association for Justice, as a board member at the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association, and as an appointed member of the Executive Committee for the State of Indiana for the National Trial Lawyers Association.

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This page has been written, edited, and reviewed by a team of legal writers following our comprehensive editorial guidelines. This page was approved by Founding Partner, Tom Blackburn, who has more than 47 years of legal experience, including over 39 years specializing as a personal injury attorney.