Our tree fell on neighbor's shed

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Cricket

Guest
Due to a huge wind storm, of which we suspect it was a small tornado, a large tree fell on the neighbor's shed, which is approximately 9' X 5'. We want to do the right thing by paying him IF we have to. Since a wind storm is an act of nature, are we responsible? If we are, we certainly will do the right thing. Now, do we pay for a new building that would be the same size and what about how old the damaged one is? What if he puts up a larger one than the one that is damaged or if he puts up a wood shed instead of the metal shed? We never had to deal with this kind of stuff before, so although we will pay him, we also want to look out for ourselves, if you know what I mean.
 
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tw1nk1es

Guest
A couple of years ago, our tree was "dropped" onto a neighbor's roof by a tornado. Our homeowner's insurance paid for it.
 
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conniecat

Guest
If the tree came from your property, you are responsible for it. I would let the insurance handle the details. :D
 
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NiteStar

Guest
I also would let my insurance company handle it. I'm glad nobody was hurt!
 
C

Cricket

Guest
Well, our insurance company said that in Maryland , if a tree fell over onto a neighbor's property and was caused by an act of nature , the owner , which is us, is NOT responsible. He said each state can have different rules to go by. Our neighbor's home insurance company should pay. I think as a good neighbor though, we are going to "help" pay for a new one and also help him remove the tree. We have all the equipment to help him out.
 
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cjbee

Guest
The first time I saw the title of this thread, I thought it said "Our tree frell on neighbor's HEAD". Yikes! :)
CJ
 
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Krazy Kruizers

Guest
Had the same thing happen a fews years -- we just called our insurance company and we let them handle it.
 
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Krazy Kruizers

Guest
And don't forget about all the stuff in the shed - insurance took care of that as well.
 
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nieciez

Guest
Cricket it is the same in VA....if a neighbor's tree falls on your house, your homeowner's pays as it is an act of nature. As for removing the tree. the homeowners insurance will pay that too but it would be nice if you offerfed to pay for 1/2 of the deductable. JMHO If this is a big tree it might be better to have it removed professionally. I know how hard it was for Leatherneck to "do it yourself" when we had it...don't know why we just didn't let the insurance do it since they had to pay for the damage.
 
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korinalacount

Guest
A few years ago a neighbors tree fell on Johns porsche he still had at the time,the neighbors offered to pay for the damage to our car,their insurance refused them,our insurance picked it up! That was here in Colorado.
 
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frito

Guest
Insurance laws can and sometimes vary from state to state.
I retired from the insurance claims business. Normally, if a tree is blown onto a neighboring piece of property and that tree is a green, healthy, solid tree. the tree owner is not responsible for damages as no one can control nature--- hence--the much mis-understood " act of god " thing. If the tree was rotten or partially rotten and the owner had cause to know or should have known it could be a hazard, then he ( usually his insurance ) will pay for the damage. Simply being the owner of something doesn't automatically make you liable for damages.
If It came a tornado and blew my roof off and it landed across the street and damaged my neighbors car or house, how could I be responsible? I had no control over the tornado-- I had not created any hazardous situation-- I was a victim the same as the neighbor. Simply because it was my roof doesn't mean I or my insurance co. would have to pay. Basically to be liable you have to have created a hazard or knew of a hazard and did nothing to correct it.
Storms are something most of us ( maybe a few---:king ) can't control--- that's one big reason we carry homeowners insurance.
Regarding the 9 x 5 storage bldg., you owe for what he lost. Nothing bigger or more fancy. If the bldg. was old and rusted, dented, etc. you would be entitled to take depreciation, as he lost an old, rusted, dented bldg. Not a !2 x 18 shiny new one. If his bldg. was in real good shape, I wouldn't worry about trying to take depreciation.
Was your tree a good, healthy tree with no defects--if so, you probably don't owe anything. If it was partially rotten or dead, then you probably do owe. But as said, you only owe for what he lost.
I'm not familiar with the ins. laws in your state but in many cases they are pretty much the same when it comes to this sort of thing. :wave
 
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reggae

Guest
Thanks for explaining a bit, Frito. Insurance is so complicated and I've always wondered how it works in these unusual circumstances.
 
C

Cricket

Guest
Frito...exactly what the insurance guy said! The tree was a healthy , tall tree and the adjuster said quite emphatically that we are not at all responsible for the damage, but we feel for the owner, so we will be offering a bit to help replace the storage building. Funny this happened because in the process he noticed a couple of trees that are in our woods that could be a future hazard, so we are going to take them down.
 
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frito

Guest
It's good of you to offer to help your neighbor toward replacing the bldg., although you wouldn't legally be required to.
His homeowners should pay, less any deductible he has so your helping would surely be appreciated by him.
And too, it's worth something to keep the peace with the neighbors, especially if they are good neighbors to start with.

Over the years I worked, believe me I ran into this problem countless times and in most cases. people just automatically assumed because the neighbor owned the tree that the neighbors policy would pay for any damages.
Then of course when they found out it wasn't necessarily the case, they would become very upset.

:wave
 
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JacquieP

Guest
Laws definitely vary from state to state. When our three trees fell, the insurance company had to call in an arborist to determine liability. Since the tree that fell on the neighbor's shed was not diseased, their homeowners insurance paid for the shed, but ours paid for the tree removal. We still helped with the shed anyway.
 
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