What To Do If A City-Owned Tree Falls On Your House Or Property

With hurricane season happening throughout parts of the United States, downed trees are inevitable. While you might know what to do if a neighbor's tree falls into your yard or on your house, it might be more unclear if the tree belonged to your town. In some cases, the municipality might be accountable for the tree, but it depends on your situation. Before you start thinking of who may be responsible for the damage, it's important to make sure you and your household are safe.

If the tree fell directly onto your house, rather than your lawn or a shed, make sure everyone, including your furry babies, is in a safe part of the home or has evacuated. When trees fall onto the roof, it's always a good idea to get out immediately. Depending on how the tree fell and what it hit, you may also need to shut off your utilities, board up broken windows, and be sure to take pictures and create documentation of the incident. You'll also need to contact your town to see if you can really ask your city to remove a tree in your yard for free, as well as your home insurance provider.

When a tree owned by your local municipality falls onto your house or land, it's important to call the city to see what can be done. In some cases, the town will be responsible for getting the tree off your property and the cost to remove the tree from your yard. Other times, your homeowner's insurance will cover the removal of the tree. The responsibility for the tree generally varies based on what caused the tree to fall and local regulations.

Unfortunately, while your city may remove a downed tree, this does not mean that your local government will be on the hook to cover harm caused by it. It may seem unfair, but oftentimes your insurance policy is what will pay for the damages caused to your home, garage, shed, fence, or other structures on your property. If the tree happened to fall on your car, your car insurance may cover the costs. Despite this, it's important to contact your city to find out more information about your specific situation.

Natural disasters and other unforeseen circumstances are bound to happen, but your city likely won't have to pay for damages if this is the cause of the downed tree. Because there was no way to know the tree would fall onto your land before it happened, the city won't cover your damages even if they remove the tree; however, there are some instances where your town would be responsible for damages to your house or property as well as the removal of the tree. If it had previously been brought to the municipality's attention that the specific tree that fell on your property was diseased or likely to fall, this could be considered negligence.

When a city's negligence is the reason a tree fell and damaged your property or home, it will likely be their responsibility to handle the removal as well as any costs to cover damages. While this won't always be the case, it's important to call the city and your insurance as soon as possible once your family is safe.