Does homeowners’ insurance cover a tree falling on your house?
When homeowners think about damage to their property, they typically consider things like fire, flood, wind, etc. What they might not think about is something like a tree falling on their house, which can cause considerable damage.
The good news is that home insurance does cover a tree falling on your house. There are certain coverage limits, of course, but replacement and repair costs are included because that sort of damage to the roof is considered to be an act of God, which you may see referred to as a covered peril.
Steps You’ll Need to Take If a Tree Falls on Your House
Now that you know home insurance does cover a tree falling on your house, it’s important you understand what you should do if this actually happens. It’s definitely not a pretty sight, and to say that the damage can be considerable is very much an understatement. If a tree falls on your house, here’s what you should do:
Immediately Evacuate the Home
The safety of everyone in your home is your absolute top priority, so make sure everyone evacuates and gets outside immediately. While it may be safe to enter certain parts of your home depending on the level of damage, you first need to make sure all adults, children, and pets are accounted for.
Figure Out if You Need to Call 911
Once everyone’s outside, call 911 if there are any serious injuries that need immediate attention. You’ll also want to call them if anyone is unaccounted for or if the tree has interfered with power lines or become a threat to pedestrians or traffic.
Take Lots of Pictures and Videos
When you get a chance, start documenting everything by taking pictures and videos of the damage. This will be needed when you file the claim, and the more detailed pictures you have of the event, the easier the process will be.
Contact a Public Insurance Adjuster
Either before or after you’ve taken pictures and video, contact a reputable public insurance adjuster to file a claim. Although this can be done through your insurance company, a public adjuster’s sole purpose is to make the process easier for you and to maximize your settlement amount. Insurance companies may try to deny or lowball your claims.
Public adjusters will work with your insurance company for you to ensure your claim is addressed in a timely manner and the payout is the correct amount to repair your home.
Contact a Tree Removal Company
No matter what time of day it is, call an emergency tree removal company so you can get them to move the damaged or fallen tree. They’ll also inspect any other trees on your property that may pose a potential threat, possibly due to a shared root system. Just keep in mind that the property needs to be safe to enter, so contact the appropriate authority in your area.
Contact a Roofing Company
Once the property has been deemed safe to enter, it’s time to call a roofing company to examine, tarp, and repair any damages to your roof. This must be done to mitigate additional damages that your homeowner’s insurance company may refuse to pay if they could’ve been avoided.
Contact a 24-Hour Plumber
Even if a tree doesn’t go too far into a home when it crashes through the roof, it may cause severe damage to pipes and other parts of your plumbing system. You need to call a plumber to stop any visible leaks and inspect your entire plumbing system for other damage or weakened areas. Again, this is to be done once you can enter safely.
Determine If You Should Turn Off the Power
As everyone knows, any mixture of water and electricity can be extremely dangerous and even fatal. If you notice that the fallen tree has caused broken pipes or you see other signs of water coming from the roof, turn off the main power going to the house to prevent any further danger.
Contact a Water Removal Service
A fallen tree causes a lot of damage, and the last thing you want is to compound that damage because of flooding. If any level of flooding has occurred, call a water removal company to get it cleaned up so you can prevent structural damage.
What Happens If a Tree Falls Somewhere Else on Your Property?
If a tree that’s on your property falls somewhere else, the way it’s handled will depend on the specifics. If it lands on a neighbor’s house or car because of a storm, for instance, this would be covered under their own home insurance policy. However, if the tree fell because of your negligence, then you could be liable for any damages.
To Recover from a Tree Falling on Your House, Contact Property Protectors.
Property Protectors can help you recover from any type of damage to your home and property, and that definitely includes a tree falling on your house. Our public adjusters have years of experience inspecting property damage and working with insurance companies to help clients get the settlements they deserve.
If your claim was denied or lowballed or you would like to learn more about our services, call us at (800) 658-1943 today to schedule a free consultation.