Nor'easter leaves tree in my house! I have to pay a $1000

[yy4me]

deductible with my insurance company in order to have the tree removed and the repair done to my house, siding and roof. I swear the gods are conspiring against me sometimes, last spring it was the sump pump that died and we lost the furnace. No $23.00 rider, no coverage for sump pump that died(check that one out folks!), $6700 for a new furnace.

Last night, huge crash at about 3:30. Neighbors tree blew over into the house. It does not matter that it is not our tree and not growing on our land, we have to account for first $1000. They are outside now with a bunch of trucks, chain saws and a chipper.

Somehow the logic on this one escapes me.

Did I mention that the power went out,lines down? It has been on and off, problems all over. What a mess!

[uppityperson]

1. I hope you get it off without further damage and that just sucks.

[hobbit709]

2. Talk to neighbor-it was THEIR tree

[Virginia Dare]

6. Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way..

the tree has to be clearly dead and noticeably a risk of falling, and you have to have let the neighbors know in writing before you have a case. It really really sucks.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

30. I know

[malaise]

3. Can't you claim it back

from your neighbour's insurance? Glad you're OK!

[Virginia Dare]

4. So sorry, that really sucks...

our neighbor's tree took out our shed and everything in it a few years back, and we got the same shock. Basically you have no recourse unless the tree was clearly ready to fall and you notified the neighbors in writing. Even then, it's not open and shut.

[Clark2008]

7. I don't think this is right.

My husband is a licensed insurance agent in all 50 states and this just doesn't sound right. I think your neighbors' homeowners insurance should have to pay. I understand yours wanting the deductible up front, but your neighbors' insurance should reimburse you.

Please IM me so I'll remember to ask hubby when he gets home. I think you're getting screwed and I'd like to help if I could.

WHOOPS! Meant to post this to the OP. If the OP could IM me - and tell me what state you're in! :)

[pitohui]

21. the neighbor's homeowner's insurance does NOT pay

your husband may be an insurance agent but quite clearly you're not, no offense

can you imagine what life would be like if every time a tree fell on somebody's house you had one insurance company suing your neighbor's insurance company before anything got done? life is too short

my credentials as a survivor of a tree strike are given in the other post below

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

5. Ah, that's no fun.

Once lost a barn to a storm. Had to write it off as a complete loss.

I think you're rather lucky it's only a thousand dollars. I suspect you'll get it back after arbitration too.

[kestrel91316]

8. Neighbor's insurance ought to cover what THEIR tree did to YOUR

house. File a claim with THEM. And tell your ins co that you have done so.

[Lex]

12. Nope. If it is 'an act of God' (like a storm) then it's not the neighbor's

fault. It's the homeowner's insurance that deals with it.

Read your own policy and see.

[kestrel91316]

16. Well, as a RENTER I don't HAVE a homeowner's policy to run and check, lol.

[Lex]

17. Well, this link might help.

This is the way it works in most states:

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/296556_trees20.html

[fed-up]

9. I got my neighbor's insurance to pay for some of my losses as they didn't maintain their tree

so that it would not cause harm to neighbor (me).

I spent lots of hours at our local law library, contacted our local Agriculture Extension Office and someone came out to look at their tree. Luckily they were not home and the guy took a sample of the tree/bark from the base of the tree.

Despite an early snowstorm (Nov w/leaves still on trees-made tree very heavy) and despite my neighbor's insurance company initially claiming it was "An Act of God" I managed to get them to pay for -removal of debris from yard and loss of my full grown apple tree, and a 25' oak and a 25' cypress.

The arborist from the ag extension gave me info on oak root fungus and I learned that since the neighbor had:

changed the grade of the soil
watered the oak in summer
paved the area under canopy
planted ivy underneath

that the above were contributing factors to the rotting/falling of the 80' 8 trunked oak tree

I also used Nolo Press Neghbor Law (I forget title of book right now) and cited a few court cases found during my research about damaged caused when neighbors did not maintain property so that it would not harm others and that said neighbors were LIABLE.

After I mailed all the above info in a letter to their insurance company they finally cut me a check for a few thousand.

This was over 15 years ago, so details are fading in my memory.


Good Luck

also, no double dipping, if their insurance company pays you, you have to notify YOUR insurance company to avoid double payment for the same thing-make sure each thing paid for is spelled out, debris removal from anything being fixed is different than debris removal from property

[pitohui]

26. what worked 15 yrs ago won't work today

leaving aside the fact that it's jaw-dropping anyone would go to that amount of work to threaten litigation against a neighbor for the high crime of watering his tree in summer (!) then there has been a lot of water under the bridge for home owner's insurance companies in the last 15 years

they are not going to pay this person a few thousand to go away, just to humor them, when the law is so clear, 15 years ago homeowner's insurance was a loss leader to tie good risks (homeowners) to other forms of insurance such as auto and other extras, they're going to be much more aggressive about refusing and/or even prosecuting b.s. claims today

seriously you threatened your neighbor for watering his tree and planting some ivy under it as a ground cover? jesus, how can people live like that? i guess i don't need to sell peace with my neighbor for $1,000 but that's just me

you really don't know that what you basically did was extortion?

[LisaM]

10. We have trees that are closer to our neighbors' houses than the height of the tree

I really don't see how you can get around this, unless you require that no tree on someone's property can be any taller than how far away it is from the property line, in which case there would be no trees! I can see where you want them to pay or share, but I don't see that it's the neighbor's fault.

[Atman]

14. It's not the neighbor's "fault." Just the neighbor's tree.

On the neighbor's property. If the wind picked up the neighbor's patio furniture and send it through your plate glass window, it's still up to the neighbor's insurance. I also think you're being screwed. Check into more deeply before you sign anything or accept/assign any blame.


.

[Lex]

15. Nope sorry. It's up to the homeowner's insurance, not the neighbor's.

Even though the tree was on the neighbor's property.

It comes under the 'act of God' (like for storms) clause.

Look it up in your own homeowner's policy.

[Atman]

18. Yeah, you're probably right. I just don't believe in god.

So I consider it an "act of wind blowing down a fucking tree that I shouldn't have to pay for."

I wonder I could get a lawyer to take up that line of defense?

.

[pitohui]

23. are you going to sue the wind?

i'm fairly sure the wind don't have any $$$

[Atman]

24. It's America! I GOTTA SUE SOMEBODY!

God sure won't pay up, I know that much.

.

[pitohui]

22. exactly lisa, you and lex are correct

most of the posters have no clue what they're talking about

the neighbor does not pay, otherwise none of us would be able to afford to have trees on our OWN property ever, which would do far more long-term damage to environment and society than the rule is "the tree hits your house, your homeowner's insurance pays"

tree strikes are a common hazard of living anywhere there are trees close to houses, esp. in suburbia where homes are close together everyone would have to remove their trees to protect themselves financially if they were at risk for paying out claims when a tree hit a neighbor's house

sheesh

i didn't like paying out a deductible either when the tree from public property crushed my house, but HELL, i'm ALIVE, damn it, paying out the deductible was the LEAST of my problems as a result of this experience, the long term effects of fear of being crushed alive, nightmares, wanting to crawl into a closet during storms is a lot more annoying than a damn deductible, at the end of the day sometimes we fuss about the $$$ to stop ourselves from thinking about just how bad it really could have been

[fed-up]

11. also I DID NOT let their workmen come into my yard-I got estimates and hired

people of my own choosing. You do NOT have to take first estimate, you can also bill them for estimate and do the work yourself which may cover the deductible (sp?).

good luck

[gollygee]

13. This happened to us once

our tree fell on our neighbor's shed and squashed it. We offered to pay half the deductible though. It doesn't seem particularly fair. But it is the rule.

Sounds awful - I hope it won't take too long for the repairs to be done!

[Forkboy]

19. One missed our house by about twenty feet or so.

I got one hanging right over where I sleep. :scared:

Hope your day gets better than it's been so far.

[pitohui]

20. been there done that some friendly advice

the people telling you to hit up the neighbor for money because "it's their tree" don't know what they're talking about and are only encouraging you to start a neighborhood war out of pure-double-dee ignorance

under law, a tree belongs to nobody, you and your insurance are responsible for any damage done by any tree ON YOUR OWN PROPERTY

this means if the tree hits your house, even if the root was on your neighbor's property, you have to pay the deductible and your insurance company then pays for the rest

it is not an "act of god" like a meteor strike, then you would have to pay it all, since insurers are not responsible for "acts of god"

the rule is frustrating when "it's not my tree," but it's better this way -- this rule prevents neighbors from constantly litigating neighbors and turning what will be a stressful year of rebuilding your home into a decade of litigation against your neighbor before you can get any money at all to start the rebuilding

as bad as it looks now, how much worse it would be if instead of getting $$$ from your insurance company in a few weeks, you had to be in litigation against your neighbor for years to settle your damages? and remember neighbors often have no money anyway, while your insurance company has plenty

it sounds like you had a normal sized tree hit your home, the tree that hit my house and crushed the entire back end, with me in the house in it, was an ancient oak weighing over 10 tons and repairs to the house cost 2/3 the original price of my house, so look on the bright side, there is always someone with a worse story -- plenty of people are killed every year in their homes and cars when trees fall on them during storms, my relationship with trees is pretty fraught right now to tell you the truth

i don't know if the logic behind the "tree belongs to no one" helps right now but maybe it will help later, certainly there is nothing good about feeling victimized by nature, god, AND your neighbor but your neighbor is simply not at fault or financially responsible for this one, so might as well keep the peace

stay strong and muddle thru somehow, you can do this :hug:

[yy4me]

25. Yea, you are right, keep a stiff upper lip and all. I just need a few

years between catastrophe's. We are fine and that is all that really matters. I just have to find the $$$. Good old Social Security doesn't go as far as it used to. There are people around us with far worse damage, I feel sorry for them. The homes right on the water are getting pounded with extremely high waves and another major high tide expected tonight. Ahh, life in New England.

[pitohui]

27. a few years between catastrophe WOULD be nice!

sometimes i feel as if it can't possibly be real, all this could not have happened in this amount of time, maybe it's one of those nightmares

what a world, what a world

[Oilwellian]

28. Sorry to hear of your damage

The winds have been horrid here in VA for the past 2 days...we lost part of our roof to wind a couple of months ago. Needless to say, I'm not feeling very secure with a tin roof and these latest winds. I don't recall them ever being this bad before and they're occurring with more frequency.

[bigwillq]

29. It knocked down my telephone wire

on top of my car. :(

Car is fine and somehow the phone service still works. But the phone company cannot come and fix it until later tonight.

Sorry about your damage. :hug: