I received a phone call yesterday {Thursday, July 4th} at around 4:30pm from a man who, until quite recently, has been my next-door neighbor for the past 6 years. I know him as Mister and even though I would never dare ask his age, his service in the Vietnam War suggests that he is at least 70 years old but 80 seems more likely.
During the call, Mister said that a tree had just fallen from his other neighbor's yard and he was now without electricity. I arrived at Mister's house about 10 minutes later and realized that the tree had also landed on his car. Since the neighbor was not home at the time, I took as many pictures as possible and waited for someone from the electric company to arrive. After the electric company worker gave me the go-ahead, I proceeded to cut the tree with my chainsaw for the next couple of hours.
The absent neighbor arrived home as I was finishing up and was quite unreasonable about the entire situation. At first he was insistent that there was no need to contact his homeowner's insurance, twice stating that he was not responsible for "an act of God." After informing him that his tone~demeanor toward my friend was completely unacceptable {in terms more suited for someone of his intelligence level}, I explained that allowing a woodpecker to continuously peck away at an already compromised tree was "an act of negligent a^^hole" rather than "an act of God" and that the afore mentioned should retrieve~produce his insurance information posthaste.
Every attempt to contact an actual human representative of the neighbor's insurance company has been futile to this point, which is not surprising given the Independence Day holiday, but I believe that the neighbor is responsible~liable for the damage caused by his tree.
Not having any experience with a situation like this, I am interested in any feedback that you are willing to give.
An Act of God?
- Fr_Tom
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I have zero experience with homeowner's insurance claims. He does need to contact his agent.
Basically you file a claim with your own insurance company, and they get it out of the other insurance company.
Basically you file a claim with your own insurance company, and they get it out of the other insurance company.
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- Ruffinogold
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The guy is liable . His insurance will cover it more than likely . He should call his insurance and take care of it and not even bother the old guy about it . He sounds like a douche ... have your buddy contact his insurance co for sure
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- Bill with eoPd
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He was not able to contact anyone (human) from his insurance company either.
The hope was to get something going before Monday, as Beryl is surely going to impact this area.
- Presby John-Dave
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Sad stuff. People who are guilty tend to get defensive. It would seem that the neighbor knows he's on the hook for it. It might be worth it to contact the municipality.
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- Kevin Keith
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- Piping Abe
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That tree was compromised from bugs and eaten from the inside out. I’d be really concered about those getting into the house also. The tree is totally the persons fault whose property it was on.
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- simplepipes
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Insurance claims are unique in that they follow the damage not the cause. In this case the auto owner needs to file a claim with their respective company. The insurance company may subrogate against the neighbor for contributory negligence but that is even doubtful.
You have an obligation to protect your property from potential damage even if the source is not contained on or about your property.
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You have an obligation to protect your property from potential damage even if the source is not contained on or about your property.
-sp
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- Piping Abe
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I only had one homeowners insurance claim for the hurricane last year. Thankfully it was part of my tree that fell. The main damage was from wind though.
There was a gigantic 50+ ft Pine tree in the neighbors property leaning into our yard. I’m glad I got outta there before that thing gave way!
There was a gigantic 50+ ft Pine tree in the neighbors property leaning into our yard. I’m glad I got outta there before that thing gave way!
The Secret to Happiness is Low Expectations