Neighbor's dead tree fell on our house.

[mjmac01]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? We live in GA.

Our neighbors dead oak tree fell on our home.

About 5 months ago we had a tree service come give us an estimate to take down some trees that were close to the house. The tree service guy, Tim, was very concerned about our neighbor’s tree. He said it had been dead a long time and that it was dangerous. The tree had a lot of rot at the root base and was leading towards our house. The tree was a 60-foot oak.
That night I spoke to our neighbor about taking that tree down and told her that we had a service coming the next week. Our neighbor said she couldn’t make any decision about the tree until her son saw it and that he was out of town.

The following week the tree service came to take down our trees. Tim, from the tree service, spoke to our neighbor, told her it was dangerous and gave her a discounted price to take the tree down that day. Again our neighbor said “no”, her son was still out of town. (Just in case ownership was the issue I checked and the house is in her name and not her son’s.)

About 2 months ago, the tree did fall on our house just after a rain storm. It hit the side of the house, fell across the top and even dented the gutter on the side of the garage. The roof was damaged (it cracked a ridge beam), punctured the roof in several places, and dented the gutter in numerous places. In the inside of the house, we have some water damage on the first floor (mostly trim work), broken and cracked drywall on the second floor, and it hit the roof hard enough to break the crown molding and crack the door trim in one of the upstairs bedroom.

The total in paid repair costs and quotes for the remaining repairs is about $4,600. Our insurance deductable is $5,000.

Our neighbor has the same insurance company as us. I spoke to her agent and they said that because I did not send our neighbor a registered letter notifying her about the dead tree, they will not pay anything towards our repairs.

Can we go to small claims court to get our neighbor to help with repair costs?

 

[JakeB]

In order to win that kind of lawsuit, you'd need to be able to prove that the neighbor was aware that the tree was hazardous. A registered letter is one way to prove it, but it's not the only way. Tim can testify that he told the neighbor.

Here's what I'd do if I were in your shoes: I'd call Tim and ask him if he'll testify on your behalf and sign an affidavit that he informed the neighbor about the tree. If he agrees, then I'd contact the insurance company and tell the agent that you intend to sue the neighbor if the bill is not paid, and that you don't need a registered letter to prove knowledge because Tim will testify. Then offer to send the affidavit to the agent as proof. I think you'll get reimbursed without the need for a lawsuit. But if you do have to sue, you'll be in good shape to win.

 

[mjmac01]

Thank You

Thank you for your advice. We will take the route of getting as statement from the tree service. It turns out that he only lives 3 blocks from my house -- another neighbor.

Hopefully, he will be willing to help us.

Thanks again....

 

[campaign2010]

For more simple matters like this (it's cut & dry in your favor I believe) a demand letter can mean a lot. Have you looked into prepaid legal? I did not use their service in time to solve my own problem. After signing up about a year after the problem, the attorney said that one letter should have gotten my money back. Unfortunately, the person is politically connected & I didn't want any problems with the police. So I backed off.

 

[latigo]

In order to win that kind of lawsuit, you'd need to be able to prove that the neighbor was aware that the tree was hazardous. A registered letter is one way to prove it . . .

Please explain if you will, how an after-the-fact-registered-letter from the OP to the neighbor would tend to prove prior knowledge that the condition of his tree posed a potential threat to the OP’s property.

 

[davidmcbeth3]

if the tree was healthy and it fell onto your house, then what? Thats right, it needs to be paid by the tree owner. You are confusing the issue with the trees' health. Is the "tree guy" an expert? Likely not. Are you an expert? Likely not. Is your neighbor an expert? Likely not. Take him to small claims. His tree fell on your house, zingo-bingo - case closed.

 

[Mass_Shyster]

if the tree was healthy and it fell onto your house, then what? Thats right, it needs to be paid by the tree owner.

Umm.. No. The tree owner is not liable for something that is not reasonably forseeable. Healthy trees don't simply fall for no reason. If they did, no insurance company would write a liability policy for homeowners with trees along a boundary. They would make you remove them, or pay extra for the additional risk, like they do for dog owners.