TULSA, Okla. — With trees down everywhere, the Problem Solvers are hearing from lots of homeowners wanting to know who pays when a tree falls.
We met Ralph Bendel surveying a sea of downed trees along his street. “People get in a panic mode right now,” he said, “they just want to get it cleaned up."
Ralph wants to give his neighbor credit for trimming his trees, especially the one Saturday’s devastating winds that could have knocked it over into his own yard. Bendel said, “That tree would have been in my swimming pool, if he had not, thank you, neighbor, for doing that, not many people do that, keep their trees trimmed out."
And the story Ralph tells leads to an important lesson when it comes to who's responsible if a neighbor's tree happens to fall on your property.
If there's a history of documented negligence on the part of the neighbor such as not maintaining potentially dangerous trees, then that neighbor may be on the hook to pay for the damage.
The same could be true if you don't maintain your own trees. If you knew there was a problem, and the trees fell and damaged your own property, then you make an insurance claim it could be denied according to insurance analyst, Dan Karr, with ValChoice. "So if that branch falls off onto your roof, it could be your fault, and they won't cover it."
But in most cases, experts tell the Problem Solvers that if no negligence is involved the insurance covering the damaged home, will pay for repairs, and tree removal. But there is a catch according to Karr.
"If it's an insured structure, there is an allowance for debris cleanup so that would take care of getting the tree cut up and hauled away."
However, if your tree falls but doesn't hit a structure you will have to pay for the cleanup and removal.
Contact the Problem Solvers:
- 918-748-1502
- problemsolvers@kjrh.com
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